New York, NY (Top40 Charts) Our Lady Peace (OLP), which has won four Juno Awards and sold more than five million albums since its formation in 1992, today released the video for "Stop Making Stupid People Famous," the lead single from the band's upcoming new album, Spiritual Machines II. The record continues many of the themes from the band's critically-acclaimed release Spiritual Machines, which was inspired by a book by Raymond Kurzweil, who appears on both albums. The album is being released by Shelter/BMG. The video also features Nadya Tolokno of the iconoclastic feminist Russian group Pussy Riot, several members of which have been arrested for their public opposition to the Russian government in recent years.
Raine Maida, the singer and co-founder of Our Lady Peace, says that the song is not an attack on anyone, but is designed to celebrate human achievement. "There are so many amazing people who are truly changing the world that no one has ever heard of. They deserve to be recognized for their accomplishments - those are the people who should be famous."
To support this mission,
Our Lady Peace has launched the
Future Famous programme, which recognizes exceptional people in fields ranging from science to environmentalism to music to art. This summer, the band will announce the first 25 honourees, who will be featured in the band's videos and other work. "This seemed like a natural flow from the song because it's about showcasing some of the most incredible people in the world and highlighting their amazing work," Maida says.
"This is such an unbelievable and unexpected opportunity," says Canadian climate activist
Sophia Mathur. "I'm not really a household name - I'm definitely not famous - so I was surprised to get a call from the band asking me to be part of this amazing group. It's a really special community made up of people from all over the world doing extraordinary things."
Consisting of Raine Maida, Duncan Coutts, Jason Pierce, and Steve Mazur,
Our Lady Peace is one of Canada's most successful bands. They have toured the world and sold over 5 million albums, won four JUNO Awards and 10 Much
Music Video Awards. In 2020, OLP and their fans celebrated the 20th anniversary of their critically acclaimed "Spiritual Machines" which arguably is one of the most influential Canadian Alt-Rock albums of the 2000s as it firmly re-established OLP as a dominant force in modern rock. 2021 continues the celebration of "Spiritual Machines" with the release of "Spiritual Machines II" produced by Dave Sitek (TV on the Radio) and featuring once again audio clips from futurist/author Ray Kurzweil. The album is a return to form, both musically and lyrically, as OLP embraces their early guitar-driven, rhythmic roots and cryptic lyrics.
