If you only catch one music video premiere this summer let it be this one. Punk rock band Rise Against has released a gripping new anti-bullying themed video for their single "Make It Stop (September's children)," the third song taken from band's latest sixth release, "Endgame," which debuted at No.2 on the Billboard Top 200 Albums Chart. The video was created in support "It Gets Better" campaign, which has sparked an outpouring of encouraging YouTube videos in a virtual support network for bullied teens.Rise Against is well known for lending their voice to causes as well as their close relationship to their fans. The punk rock band doesn't avoid singing about hot-button topics. Throughout its decade of music-making, the Chicago-based group has taken some very public stands on issues ranging from the American military engagements in Iraq and Afghanistan to climate change, even extending its music activism to the meat-processing industry. So the new video isn't entirely surprising. The anti-bullying anthem is dedicated to a string of teens who committed suicide in fall 2010 as a result of homophobic bullying in their communities.
"Rock culture is a sort of hyper-masculine place, and a lot of bands were unsure what to do about that. I hope that what we've done is spread this message to other bands in our scene. The song came out of a wake-up call from Rise Against's fans," the band' frontman Tim McIlrath said McIlrath said. The song and the video closes with McIlrath reading a list of names of teens who committed suicide as a result of homophobic bullying. It's a powerful moment that the band hadn't originally planned.
Directed by Award-winning director Marc Klasfeld, the video was filmed at Rolling Meadows High School, where McIlrath went to school. The video depicts the band performing the song in the gymnasium alongside moving scenes, which follows the struggles of three gay teens in a high school in suburban Chicago. All three consider killing themselves after being bullied by their classmates, but ultimately decide to try and work through their pain and keep an eye on the promises of the future. The result is a powerful clip that tackles these issues in a real and inspirational way.
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