Sí Se Puede Cambiar
Encyclopedia
"Sí, Se Puede Cambiar" is a song and music video
created in support of Sen. Barack Obama
's 2008 presidential campaign
. However, the video has no official ties to the Obama campaign. The song was written by Andres Useche
. The video, which features Useche performing, was directed by Eric Byler
, Warren Fu and Andres Useche
, and was released on February 22, 2008 on YouTube
under the username "United For Obama".
The video attracted national and international attention and through 2008 Andres Useche accepted invitations to do radio, newspaper and TV interviews in which he promoted Barack Obama's campaign.
music video, with English subtitles, was the creation of a volunteer network of Obama supporters known as United For Obama. The creation and release of the video was originally intended to influence Spanish-speaking voters in the Texas democratic primary
. The video, and song, criticizes the Bush administration while presenting Obama as the candidate for change in the 2008 election
. The video features footage of Useche singing and performing on acoustic guitar
, intercut with images critical of Bush—images intended to exemplify some of his failed policies, such as soldiers in Iraq and victims of Hurricane Katrina
, and images in support of Obama, such as volunteers at work for his campaign, and supporters at his political rallies. Personalities who appear in the video include California State Senator
Gil Cedillo
, Wendy Carrillo, and actors Kelly Hu
, Ken Leung
and Kal Penn
.
, French
, Chinese
, Vietnamese
, Korean
and Arabic
have also been released.
Music video
A music video or song video is a short film integrating a song and imagery, produced for promotional or artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a marketing device intended to promote the sale of music recordings...
created in support of Sen. Barack Obama
Barack Obama
Barack Hussein Obama II is the 44th and current President of the United States. He is the first African American to hold the office. Obama previously served as a United States Senator from Illinois, from January 2005 until he resigned following his victory in the 2008 presidential election.Born in...
's 2008 presidential campaign
Barack Obama presidential campaign, 2008
Barack Obama, then junior United States Senator from Illinois, announced his candidacy for the presidency of the United States in Springfield, Illinois, on February 10, 2007. On August 27, 2008, he was declared nominee of the Democratic Party for the 2008 presidential election...
. However, the video has no official ties to the Obama campaign. The song was written by Andres Useche
Andres Useche
Andrés Useche is an award-winning writer, film director, graphic artist and singer/songwriter.-Early life:...
. The video, which features Useche performing, was directed by Eric Byler
Eric Byler
Eric Byler is an American film director, screenwriter and political activist. He identifies as hapa biracial, born to a Chinese American mother and a white American father. He grew up in Virginia, Hawaii , and California. He graduated from Wesleyan University in 1994, majoring in film...
, Warren Fu and Andres Useche
Andres Useche
Andrés Useche is an award-winning writer, film director, graphic artist and singer/songwriter.-Early life:...
, and was released on February 22, 2008 on YouTube
YouTube
YouTube is a video-sharing website, created by three former PayPal employees in February 2005, on which users can upload, view and share videos....
under the username "United For Obama".
The video attracted national and international attention and through 2008 Andres Useche accepted invitations to do radio, newspaper and TV interviews in which he promoted Barack Obama's campaign.
Content
The original Spanish languageSpanish language
Spanish , also known as Castilian , is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several languages and dialects in central-northern Iberia around the 9th century and gradually spread with the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into central and southern Iberia during the...
music video, with English subtitles, was the creation of a volunteer network of Obama supporters known as United For Obama. The creation and release of the video was originally intended to influence Spanish-speaking voters in the Texas democratic primary
Texas Democratic primary and caucuses, 2008
The 2008 Texas Democratic primary and caucuses were a series of events to determine the delegates that the Texas Democratic Party sent to the 2008 Democratic National Convention...
. The video, and song, criticizes the Bush administration while presenting Obama as the candidate for change in the 2008 election
United States presidential election, 2008
The United States presidential election of 2008 was the 56th quadrennial presidential election. It was held on November 4, 2008. Democrat Barack Obama, then the junior United States Senator from Illinois, defeated Republican John McCain, the senior U.S. Senator from Arizona. Obama received 365...
. The video features footage of Useche singing and performing on acoustic guitar
Acoustic guitar
An acoustic guitar is a guitar that uses only an acoustic sound board. The air in this cavity resonates with the vibrational modes of the string and at low frequencies, which depend on the size of the box, the chamber acts like a Helmholtz resonator, increasing or decreasing the volume of the sound...
, intercut with images critical of Bush—images intended to exemplify some of his failed policies, such as soldiers in Iraq and victims of Hurricane Katrina
Hurricane Katrina
Hurricane Katrina of the 2005 Atlantic hurricane season was a powerful Atlantic hurricane. It is the costliest natural disaster, as well as one of the five deadliest hurricanes, in the history of the United States. Among recorded Atlantic hurricanes, it was the sixth strongest overall...
, and images in support of Obama, such as volunteers at work for his campaign, and supporters at his political rallies. Personalities who appear in the video include California State Senator
California State Senate
The California State Senate is the upper house of the California State Legislature. There are 40 state senators. The state legislature meets in the California State Capitol in Sacramento. The Lieutenant Governor is the ex officio President of the Senate and may break a tied vote...
Gil Cedillo
Gil Cedillo
Gilbert Anthony Cedillo is a politician and a member of the Democratic Party. He is currently serving in the California State Assembly....
, Wendy Carrillo, and actors Kelly Hu
Kelly Hu
Kelly Ann Hu is an American actress and former fashion model. She was Miss Teen USA 1985 and Miss Hawaii USA 1993.-Early life:Hu was born in Honolulu, Hawaii, the daughter of Juanita, an engineering drafter for Honolulu, and Herbert Hu, a salesman and exotic bird breeder; the two divorced during...
, Ken Leung
Ken Leung
Kenneth "Ken" Leung is an American actor best known for his role as Miles Straume in the ABC television series Lost and roles in such films as Shanghai Kiss, Rush Hour, X-Men: The Last Stand, and Saw.-Early life:...
and Kal Penn
Kal Penn
Kalpen Suresh Modi , best known by his stage name Kal Penn, is an American film and television actor, producer, and civil servant....
.
Viewership
Since the original posting on YouTube, the video has been re-posted a number of times by other users. On April 8, 2008, "Si Se Puede Cambiar" was chosen by YouTube to represent Obama in the first ever "Trendsetter Tuesday". The video was featured on the main page of the site along with videos about the other US presidential candidates. "Si Se Puede Cambiar" quickly reached 350,000 views and maintained a rating of 4/5 stars, beating the scores for the Clinton and McCain videos. The video had been watched in 193 countries. Versions of the video with subtitles in GermanGerman language
German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
, French
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
, Chinese
Chinese language
The Chinese language is a language or language family consisting of varieties which are mutually intelligible to varying degrees. Originally the indigenous languages spoken by the Han Chinese in China, it forms one of the branches of Sino-Tibetan family of languages...
, Vietnamese
Vietnamese language
Vietnamese is the national and official language of Vietnam. It is the mother tongue of 86% of Vietnam's population, and of about three million overseas Vietnamese. It is also spoken as a second language by many ethnic minorities of Vietnam...
, Korean
Korean language
Korean is the official language of the country Korea, in both South and North. It is also one of the two official languages in the Yanbian Korean Autonomous Prefecture in People's Republic of China. There are about 78 million Korean speakers worldwide. In the 15th century, a national writing...
and Arabic
Arabic language
Arabic is a name applied to the descendants of the Classical Arabic language of the 6th century AD, used most prominently in the Quran, the Islamic Holy Book...
have also been released.
Video production credits
- Written and performed by Andres Useche
- Directed by Eric Byler & Warren Fu
- Video produced by Annabel Park and Eric Byler
- Edited by Warren Fu
- Videography by Eric Byler, Diego Galindo, Amyn Kaderali, Jeff Man, David Hou, Annabel Park, and Rueben Aaronson.
- Song recorded and mixed by Tom Von Doom
- Video post supervision by Loni Pham.
Appearances
The following public figures are featured in the music video, either on newly shot video, archival footage, or still photographs (time indicates first appearance):- Andres UsecheAndres UsecheAndrés Useche is an award-winning writer, film director, graphic artist and singer/songwriter.-Early life:...
- 00:01 - César ChávezCésar ChávezCésar Estrada Chávez was an American farm worker, labor leader, and civil rights activist who, with Dolores Huerta, co-founded the National Farm Workers Association, which later became the United Farm Workers ....
- 00:12 - Robert F. KennedyRobert F. KennedyRobert Francis "Bobby" Kennedy , also referred to by his initials RFK, was an American politician, a Democratic senator from New York, and a noted civil rights activist. An icon of modern American liberalism and member of the Kennedy family, he was a younger brother of President John F...
- 00:17 - George W. BushGeorge W. BushGeorge Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 43rd President of the United States, from 2001 to 2009. Before that, he was the 46th Governor of Texas, having served from 1995 to 2000....
- 01:13 - Dick CheneyDick CheneyRichard Bruce "Dick" Cheney served as the 46th Vice President of the United States , under George W. Bush....
- 01:16 - John McCainJohn McCainJohn Sidney McCain III is the senior United States Senator from Arizona. He was the Republican nominee for president in the 2008 United States election....
- 01:22 - Barack ObamaBarack ObamaBarack Hussein Obama II is the 44th and current President of the United States. He is the first African American to hold the office. Obama previously served as a United States Senator from Illinois, from January 2005 until he resigned following his victory in the 2008 presidential election.Born in...
- 01:27 - Eric BylerEric BylerEric Byler is an American film director, screenwriter and political activist. He identifies as hapa biracial, born to a Chinese American mother and a white American father. He grew up in Virginia, Hawaii , and California. He graduated from Wesleyan University in 1994, majoring in film...
- 01:54 - Annabel ParkAnnabel ParkAnnabel Park is a documentary filmmaker, political activist and community volunteer.- Early years :Born in 1968 in Seoul, South Korea, Annabel immigrated to the United States with her family when she was nine years old, and was raised in Texas and Maryland...
- 01:58 - Gil CedilloGil CedilloGilbert Anthony Cedillo is a politician and a member of the Democratic Party. He is currently serving in the California State Assembly....
- - Ted KennedyTed KennedyEdward Moore "Ted" Kennedy was a United States Senator from Massachusetts and a member of the Democratic Party. Serving almost 47 years, he was the second most senior member of the Senate when he died and is the fourth-longest-serving senator in United States history...
- 02:47 - Ken LeungKen LeungKenneth "Ken" Leung is an American actor best known for his role as Miles Straume in the ABC television series Lost and roles in such films as Shanghai Kiss, Rush Hour, X-Men: The Last Stand, and Saw.-Early life:...
- 03:21 - Kal PennKal PennKalpen Suresh Modi , best known by his stage name Kal Penn, is an American film and television actor, producer, and civil servant....
- 03:45 - Kelly HuKelly HuKelly Ann Hu is an American actress and former fashion model. She was Miss Teen USA 1985 and Miss Hawaii USA 1993.-Early life:Hu was born in Honolulu, Hawaii, the daughter of Juanita, an engineering drafter for Honolulu, and Herbert Hu, a salesman and exotic bird breeder; the two divorced during...
- 03:47 - Michelle ObamaMichelle ObamaMichelle LaVaughn Robinson Obama is the wife of the 44th and incumbent President of the United States, Barack Obama, and is the first African-American First Lady of the United States...
- 04:05
External links
- Official Obama for America site (Spanish) "Si se Puede Cambiar"
- Veja (In Portuguese): Internacional: Obama, o astro pop da corrida eleitoral americana
- Sí Se Puede Cambiar on YouTubeYouTubeYouTube is a video-sharing website, created by three former PayPal employees in February 2005, on which users can upload, view and share videos....
- Sí Se Puede Cambiar with VietnameseVietnamese languageVietnamese is the national and official language of Vietnam. It is the mother tongue of 86% of Vietnam's population, and of about three million overseas Vietnamese. It is also spoken as a second language by many ethnic minorities of Vietnam...
subtitles on YouTube - Sí Se Puede Cambiar with KoreanKorean languageKorean is the official language of the country Korea, in both South and North. It is also one of the two official languages in the Yanbian Korean Autonomous Prefecture in People's Republic of China. There are about 78 million Korean speakers worldwide. In the 15th century, a national writing...
subtitles on YouTube - United For Obama YouTubeYouTubeYouTube is a video-sharing website, created by three former PayPal employees in February 2005, on which users can upload, view and share videos....
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