Avril Lavigne cover art for “Fly” photo by Mark Liddell (PRNewsFoto/Special Olympics)
WASHINGTON, April 16, 2015 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ — International, award-winning musician and philanthropist Avril Lavigne debuted her song “Fly” to benefit Special Olympics today. The song is exclusively available today, April 16, on iTunes (http://smarturl.it/avrilflysingle) 100 days before the start of the 2015 Special Olympics World Games, which will be the world’s largest sporting event in 2015, and will take place July 25-August 2 in Los Angeles. The inspiring music video for “Fly”, debuted today on ABC’s Good Morning America, featuring Avril Lavigne and Special Olympics athletes from around the world.
“This song means a lot to me personally,” says Lavigne. “It is inspired by the many young people I’ve met throughout my work with my Foundation. They pursue their dreams no matter what obstacles they face.” The Avril Lavigne Foundation provides support to children and youth living with serious illnesses or disabilities. “Special Olympics’ mission is to unleash the human spirit through the transformative power and joy of sports, so they’re a natural fit for this song.”
In September 2014, as part of the Avril Lavigne Foundation’s support for Special Olympics, Avril launched a campaign for her 30th birthday, which raised funds to support 30 Special Olympics athletes competing in the 2015 Special Olympics World Games. During her 2014 World Tour, Avril visited a local Special Olympics Program in Shanghai to learn more about their work, and met with and invited more than 200 Special Olympics athletes to her shows in 14 countries.
Lavigne co-wrote “Fly” with her husband Chad Kroeger and David Hodges. The track was produced by Avril Lavigne and Chris Baseford, mixed by Chris Lord-Alge at Mix LA with assistance from Keith Armstrong and Nik Karpen, with additional engineering from Andrew Schubert and Adam Chagnon, engineered by Chris Baseford, and mastered by Ted Jensen. Special thanks to Epic Records, a division of Sony Music Entertainment. The track also features violin by Slovakian sensation Filip Jan?ík, who is known for melding rock and pop with classical violin.
The music video for “Fly” was directed by Avril Lavigne and Robb Dipple (who also provided photography direction), produced by Lisa Lax & Nancy Stern, edited by Ray Conley and associate produced by Brittany Futterknecht.
“Fly” will also be featured during Special Olympics’ first-ever Unified Relay Across America presented by Bank of America event, where over the course of 46 days, over 20,000 participants nationwide will carry the Flame of Hope to Los Angeles for the Special Olympics World Games. The relay will kick off May 26th in Augusta, Maine; Miami, Florida; and Washington, D.C. and end on July 10th. Along each route, nightly celebrations will take place with musical performances, celebrity guests and Unified Sports Experiences (where people with and without intellectual disabilities play on the same team together). Every night, during each community celebration, Avril’s song will be played when the torch arrives into the city. For more information on the relay, visitwww.unifiedrelay.org. And for more information about the 2015 Special Olympics World Games, visit www.LA2015.org.
About Avril Lavigne
Avril Lavigne has made an indelible mark on the music community, selling more than 35 million albums worldwide, 8 Grammy nominations and the winner of 7 Canadian Juno Awards. She burst onto the music scene in 2002 with the critically acclaimed Let Go featuring the smash singles “Sk8r Boi” and “Complicated.” Her 2004 release, Under My Skin, debuted at #1 on the Billboard charts, as did her third album, The Best Damn Thing, which produced the irrepressible #1 single “Girlfriend” logging more than 198 million views on YouTube! Lavigne also wrote the song “Alice” for Tim Burton’s critically acclaimed Disney Film “Alice in Wonderland.” Lavigne’s fourth studio album, Goodbye Lullaby, featured the smash-hit singles “What The Hell,” and “Smile,” released in 2011 to critical acclaim. Outside the recording studio, Lavigne is continuously adding pieces to her lifestyle apparel brand, Abbey Dawn; has released three fragrances, Forbidden Rose, Black Star, and Wild Rose; and, in early 2010, Lavigne created The Avril Lavigne Foundation. Avril Lavigne’s eponymously titled fifth studio album released in November 2013 debuting at #1 in more than a dozen countries. Avril Lavigne features the top 20 hit single “Here’s To Never Growing Up,” which debuted at #1 in 22 countries and was a top 10 single in 44 countries, and the smash hit duet with husband Chad Kroeger, “Let Me Go.” For more information, please visit: www.avrillavigne.com, www.twitter.com/avrillavigne, or www.facebook.com/avrillavigne.
About The Avril Lavigne Foundation
The Avril Lavigne Foundation was founded by multi-platinum singer-songwriter and philanthropist Avril Lavigne in early 2010. The Avril Lavigne Foundation R.O.C.K.S.: Respect, Opportunity, Choices, Knowledge, and Strength in support of children and youth living with serious illnesses or disabilities. The Foundation partners with leading charitable organizations to design and deliver programs, raise awareness and mobilize support for children and youth living with a serious illness or a disability. For information, please visit www.theavrillavignefoundation.org, www.twitter.com/avrilfoundation, or www.facebook.com/theavrillavignefoundation.
About Special Olympics
Special Olympics is a global movement that unleashes the human spirit through the transformative power and joy of sports, every day around the world. We empower people with intellectual disabilities to become accepted and valued members of their communities, which leads to a more respectful and inclusive society for all. Using sports as the catalyst and programming around health and education, Special Olympics is fighting inactivity, injustice and intolerance. Founded in 1968 by Eunice Kennedy Shriver, the Special Olympics movement has grown to more than 4.4 million athletes in 170 countries. With the support of more than 1.3 million coaches and volunteers, Special Olympics delivers 32 Olympic-type sports and more than 81,000 games and competitions throughout the year. Special Olympics is supported by individuals, foundations and partners, including the Christmas Records Trust, the Law Enforcement Torch Run® for Special Olympics, The Coca-Cola Company, The Walt Disney Company and ESPN, Lions Clubs International, Microsoft, Toys”R”Us, Mattel, P&G, Bank of America, Essilor Vision Foundation, the B. Thomas Golisano Foundation, Finish Line, The Safeway Foundation, and Safilo Group. Visit Special Olympics at www.specialolympics.org. Engage with us on: Twitter @specialolympics; fb.com/specialolympics; youtube.com/specialolympicshq, instagram.com/specialolympics and twitter.com/specialolympics.