Songwriter Tributes to Victims of Flint Water Crisis #20062

This episode features two amazing award winning singer-songwriters Antje Duvekot and Barb Barton  These folk singers use their voices and platforms to help keep us from forgetting the  poisoned children of Flint, Michigan.   The Flint Water Crisis has captured the attention of songwriters who have written about the drinking water tragedy in Flint.  The water crisis has resulted in  dozens of deaths and children poisoned by lead in the water supply.  The crisis was 5 years ago and still not resolved. 
Antje Duvekot wrote and performs the song Flint, Michigan. She is a German born Folk singer who lives in the Boston area. She is an accomplished songwriter and has performed at the Newport Folk Festival, one of the world’s most renown folk festivals. Antje has won some of the top songwriting awards including the Grand Prize in the John Lennon Songwriting Competition, the prestigious, Kerrville (TX) "Best New Folk Award" and in one of the nation's top music markets, she won the Boston Music Award for "Outstanding Folk Act", three of the top prizes in the singer songwriter world. Duvekot's latest album, Toward the Thunder, is her fourth full-length studio album featuring 11 tracks. In 2007, Duvekot's song "Merry-Go-Round" was featured a large-scale marketing campaign for Bank of America, including a high-profile spot during Super Bowl XLI.
Barb Barton is a Lansing-based folk singer-songwriter.  The making of her song “Water” was captured with a video and is the focus of this podcast episode. (https://youtu.be/b9S7h8KRy6A) Barb arranged for a Flint community choir, Cho’zen, directed by Albert Strickland to participate in recording the song. The result is a magnificent and moving testament to the unity that only a community emergency brings about.
The filming of  the song “Water” was then followed by the production of a documentary movie by the same name. The movie focused on the efforts to help the victims of this horrible crisis.
Barb Barton founded “Love From Lansing”, a group in Lansing, Michigan (https://www.facebook.com/LovefromLansing) a charitable group that was determined to help out the people of the City of Flint during their time of need. This Lansing, Michigan group raised money to buy water, diapers, baby wipes and other supplies.  
Barb Barton is also an award winning author.  Her book Manoomin: The Story of Wild Rice in Michigan has received the following awards: MSU Press Award 2018 Michigan History Award 2019 Michigan Notable Book Award 2019 American Library Association Choice List of Outstanding Academic Titles 2020 Independent Publishers Bronze Medal (Great Lakes Region).  You can learn more about Barb Barton and her music by visiting her website at www.Barbbarton.com

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