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Michaela Anne released new music video “If I Wanted Your Opinion” from critically acclaimed album Desert Dove. Motivating optimism and conviction the new music video premiered on Ditty TV beginning of this week. inspired by a Shania Twain-type sass, “If I Wanted Your Opinion” is Anne’s rallying cry to keep your opinions and judgments to yourself if they are critical of others.
"The song is inspired by my, and my co-writer Mary Bragg's, shared frustration with unsolicited opinions, specifically as women,” explains Anne. “We wanted to create a fun anthemic PSA of sorts asserting ourselves as independent beings, not needing to adhere to or listen to the expectations or 'advice' put upon us.” |
Michaela Anne’s in-depth essay on why she wrote “If I Wanted Your Opinion” was recently published at Medium, “I was inspired by the kitschy fun videos of the pop-country female stars of the 1990s and wanted to include that spirit in the video,” offers Anne. “Showing that while we are serious about our assertions of confidence and independence, we don't take ourselves too seriously."
“I work with a lot of young girls, and through the years, I have seen how their confidence and audacity erodes as they age,” says Anne. “I want to do my best to help young girls hold onto that courage to be unapologetically themselves, so I wanted the video to include that fun, youthful feminine strength. So we invited one of my students, an aspiring singer, and songwriter, Carlisle Wright, to play the role of the young girl.”
In September, Michaela Anne launched an “If I Wanted Your Opinion” social media campaign in which she asked friends and fans to share their stories. “I believe we all are better off when we feel the freedom and safety to be radically ourselves, and we do that by connecting, sharing and encouraging each other,” says Anne. Thus far, ten stories have been shared featuring the song’s co-writer, Mary Bragg, artists Joe Pug and Frewuhn, Michaela’s dad, and a former school teacher, among others.
In September, Michaela Anne launched an “If I Wanted Your Opinion” social media campaign in which she asked friends and fans to share their stories. “I believe we all are better off when we feel the freedom and safety to be radically ourselves, and we do that by connecting, sharing and encouraging each other,” says Anne. Thus far, ten stories have been shared featuring the song’s co-writer, Mary Bragg, artists Joe Pug and Frewuhn, Michaela’s dad, and a former school teacher, among others.
A portion of the proceeds from the campaign’s “If I Wanted Your Opinion, You Would Know” T-shirt will benefit Girls Opportunity Alliance, which “seeks to empower adolescent girls around the world through education.”
In March, for her Refinery 29 op-ed piece, she shared her thoughts about being a musician in these uncertain times and spoke of losing her tour, income, and a friend to Coronavirus. She has since been featured in the New York Times, which included a photo of her Livestream from home in their ‘Photos of Life Transformed by a Pandemic’ series; on the NPR special series ‘The National Conversation with All Things Considered’; on the Surviving the Music Industry Podcast that explores topics including celebrating diversity alongside the lack of it in the music industry, particularly in the Americana genre; and in the recently aired BBC News Coronavirus Conversations: Musicians.
With her spring tour canceled, in April, Anne launched a weekly concert on Instagram and Facebook Live dedicated to a different charity each week. By donating half her tips each week, “A Livestream From Here, For...” has, thus far, raised thousands of dollars benefitting an array of charities, including Here With Us Foundation in memory of her friend Ron Louie; NYC Makes PPE; Aim High Foster Support Network; Gideon’s Army; The Troubadour; Music and Memory; YEAH!, Youth Empowerment Through Arts and Humanities; the Loveland Foundation; and Equal Justice Initiative.
In March, for her Refinery 29 op-ed piece, she shared her thoughts about being a musician in these uncertain times and spoke of losing her tour, income, and a friend to Coronavirus. She has since been featured in the New York Times, which included a photo of her Livestream from home in their ‘Photos of Life Transformed by a Pandemic’ series; on the NPR special series ‘The National Conversation with All Things Considered’; on the Surviving the Music Industry Podcast that explores topics including celebrating diversity alongside the lack of it in the music industry, particularly in the Americana genre; and in the recently aired BBC News Coronavirus Conversations: Musicians.
With her spring tour canceled, in April, Anne launched a weekly concert on Instagram and Facebook Live dedicated to a different charity each week. By donating half her tips each week, “A Livestream From Here, For...” has, thus far, raised thousands of dollars benefitting an array of charities, including Here With Us Foundation in memory of her friend Ron Louie; NYC Makes PPE; Aim High Foster Support Network; Gideon’s Army; The Troubadour; Music and Memory; YEAH!, Youth Empowerment Through Arts and Humanities; the Loveland Foundation; and Equal Justice Initiative.