New York, NY (Top40 Charts) Singing You Home: Children's Songs for Family Reunification - a new bilingual children's album featuring multiple award-winning artists - has debuted at #1 on the Billboard "Top Children's Current Albums" chart its first week of release. It also charted #2 on Billboard's "Top Children's Overall Albums" chart, #112 on the "Top Current Albums" chart and #162 on the "Top Albums" chart.
Singing You Home features tracks from Lin-Manuel
Miranda & Mandy Gonzalez,
Josh Groban & Idina Menzel, Audra McDonald & Jason Robert Brown, Kristin Chenoweth, Cynthia Erivo,
Laura Benanti & Isabella Preston and
Ingrid Michaelson & Ana Villafañe, with backup vocals from the Broadway Baby Mamas. The album was conceived by
Laura Benanti and produced by Benanti, Mary-Mitchell Campbell and Lynn Pinto. To order Singing You Home, visit https://smarturl.it/singingyouhome.
All artists, musicians, technicians and recording studios donated their time and talents to the project, so that a substantial portion of the proceeds from the English / Spanish language album will go directly to the non-profit organizations RAICES and ASTEP to help reunite and support families separated at the border.
"Watching children be ripped from their families is obviously very upsetting, and I felt completely helpless," Benanti said. "Then I realized that I have a lot of really talented, wonderful friends, and together, we've put together this beautiful album. We hope the music we have created can bring love and empathy into the hearts of everyone who hears it, and that the money raised will aid in reuniting children with their loved ones."
The track listing for Singing You Home is as follows:
Arrorró Mi Niño -
Laura Benanti & Isabella Preston
Singing You Home - Audra McDonald & Jason Robert Brown (a new song written by Jason Robert Brown for the album)
Cielito Lindo - Lin-Manuel
Miranda & Mandy Gonzalez
Lullaby -
Josh Groban &
Idina Menzel (written by Josh Groban,
Dave Matthews & Jochem Van Der Saag)
Beautiful Dreamer - Kristin Chenoweth (written by Stephen Foster)
Si Pudiera Leer Tus Sueños - Cynthia Erivo (written by Luis Pescetti &
Maria Pien)
Twinkle Twinkle -
Ingrid Michaelson & Ana Villafañe
"RAICES is humbled to be chosen as the recipient of this tremendous push of support. Every day we fight to put ourselves out of business, for a world where our clients feel safe and welcome," Jonathan Ryan, Executive Director, said. "Thank you to the talented folks who donated their time and talent to help keep families together. This is the true soul of America."
"ASTEP has been bringing the transforming power of the arts to underserved children for many years, including recently arrived unaccompanied minors -- the arts give them the opportunity to play, build positive peer relationships and critical thinking skills, and simply be children," Mary-Mitchell Campbell, Founder and Co-Executive Director, said. "We couldn't be more grateful for this inspiring collaboration of talent and passion to help these deserving kids."
RAICES (Refugee and Immigrant Center for Education and Legal Services) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit agency that promotes justice by providing free and low-cost legal services to underserved immigrant children, families, and refugees in Texas. Founded in 1986 as the Refugee Aid Project by community activists in South Texas, RAICES has grown to be the largest immigration legal services provider in Texas. With offices in Austin, Corpus Christi, Dallas, Fort Worth,
Houston and San Antonio, RAICES is a frontline organization in the roiling debate about immigration and immigrants in the world. As an organization that combines expertise developed from the daily practice of immigration law with a deep commitment to advocacy, RAICES is unique among immigration organizations. A diverse staff of 130 attorneys, legal assistants, and support staff provide consultations, direct legal services, representation, assistance and advocacy to communities in
Texas and to clients after they leave the state. In 2017, RAICES staff closed 51,000 cases at no cost to the client. Our advocacy and commitment to change are driven by the clients and families we serve every day as our attorneys and legal assistants provide legal advocacy and representation in an immigration system that breaks apart families and leaves millions without pathways to legal status.
ASTEP (Artists Striving to End Poverty) was conceived by Broadway musical director Mary-Mitchell Campbell and Juilliard students to transform the lives of underserved youth using the most powerful tool they had - their art. Today, ASTEP delivers after-school workshops and summer camps for young people affected by refugee and unaccompanied minor status, the justice system, homelessness, HIV/AIDS and systemic poverty. ASTEP Volunteer Teaching Artists create a safe space for students to use the arts to build leadership skills, strengthen their capacity for self-expression, learn to collaborate, and develop the confidence to make healthy life choices. With these skills, ASTEP students learn they have what it takes to succeed no matter the obstacles, which is key to breaking cycles of intergenerational poverty. For more information, visit ASTEP.org.
