Gracie Abrams, Aaron Dessner, and Bon Iver are honouring the victims of gun violence in the U.S. with a new charity single.
In a joint statement posted to Instagram on Monday, That’s So True singer Abrams, The National co-founder Dessner, and Bon Iver frontman Justin Vernon announced that they had collaborated on a song titled Sold Out.
“We made this song last year in the wake of a school shooting. (We were) reminded of it this week as our hearts were broken yet again,” they wrote. “It’s a sad one to share during the holidays, but the world is hurting and we shouldn’t look away.”
In one verse, Abrams sings, “The system works and we all stay terrified/ What are we doing here, think we got sold out/ Looks like another year without a way out.”
The song release follows the shooting at Brown University in Rhode Island on 13 December that saw two students killed and nine others injured, and the terrorist attack that occurred at Bondi Beach in Sydney, Australia the following day during which two gunmen killed 15 people at a Hanukkah celebration.
Sold Out is available to purchase from the music platform Bandcamp for $5 (£3.70), with proceeds benefitting the gun control advocacy group, Everytown.
“We are proud to support Everytown, an organization dedicated to ending gun violence in America,” they declared. “We are releasing this song to raise awareness of their mission of reducing gun violence. Please visit their website for more information on the unbelievable work they do.”
To conclude, the artists added: “Sending so much love to you all.”
And in response to the message, a representative for Everytown replied, “Beyond grateful for the support.”
