Why (Canadian band)
Encyclopedia
WHY is a band from Winnipeg, Manitoba Canada who use their music to promote and support positive causes. Their most recent album released was WHY "Red" (2007) and they are currently recording their next one. WHY had two hit singles from "Red", "The Surface" and "Red", the latter winning song of the year on Winnipeg radio station KICK FM. WHY also gained further notoriety with their video and hit single "Prisoner of Hope" in 2010.
WHY's music has been featured on the websites of the charities Impossible 2 Possible and WaterCan, in fundraising efforts for OXFAM
, UNICEF, and on Brad Pitt
's MySpace page.
In 2007, WHY released the hit album RED. The single (and title track) Red was serviced to radio worldwide. Red sat a #1 on Winnipeg radio station KICK FM's Top 40 chart for 4 weeks in a row, and was named "Song of the Year". The second single The Surface also charted, hitting #1 on KICK FM and #5 on THE Q FM in Victoria, BC and was named on the Winnipeg Free Press' Top 10 songs of 2007. WHY played many shows in Winnipeg supporting the album and appeared on A Channel's The Big Breakfast playing their hit song Red. That same year, WHY was also showcased in Canadian Music Magazine.
Soon after the release of RED, WHY underwent another line-up change. During this period, WHY released singles We Started Out (Somebody's Baby) and More or Less as part of Ray Zahab's next film Running the Sahara. This gained them further notoriety and the band soon was back with their now current line-up.
In late 2009, WHY began recording for their next album due out in the fall of 2011. During this period, they recorded and released their hit single and video Prisoner of Hope which charted as high as #6 on Winnipeg's KICK FM. The song was also picked up by several other radio stations throughout Canada. Devastated by the earthquake in Haiti
, WHY decided to donate 100% of funds raised by downloads of the song from cdbaby.com and iTunes to UNICEF. The video was also featured on UNICEF's website under the featured videos.
During the summer of 2010, the Prisoner of Hope video was entered into a contest for an opening slot before Bon Jovi in Winnipeg and made it to the finals losing to Canadian pop star Sierra Noble. Later that same summer, The video was again entered in Winnipeg Radio Station, Curve FMs "Rock on the Range" Contest and was again a finalist. Prisoner of Hope was played on Curve FM and members of the band were interviewed on air.
Since then, WHY has continued to record the rest of their upcoming album and has released Crash into the Future which is currently in rotation and charting. The band has also recorded a re-mix version featuring Grammy nominee Fresh IE. On World's AIDS Day, 2010, WHY played a benefit concert which also included music by Fresh IE at the Winnipeg Convention Center.
WHY continues to support Make Poverty History, UNICEF, and other causes and is committed to raising awareness about these organizations through its music.
After the album was completed, Cook became aware of the (RED) campaign and offered the use of WHY's single Red at no cost. However, although the song had some success, it was never picked up by the (RED) campaign.
WHY's music has been featured on the websites of the charities Impossible 2 Possible and WaterCan, in fundraising efforts for OXFAM
Oxfam
Oxfam is an international confederation of 15 organizations working in 98 countries worldwide to find lasting solutions to poverty and related injustice around the world. In all Oxfam’s actions, the ultimate goal is to enable people to exercise their rights and manage their own lives...
, UNICEF, and on Brad Pitt
Brad Pitt
William Bradley "Brad" Pitt is an American actor and film producer. Pitt has received two Academy Award nominations and four Golden Globe Award nominations, winning one...
's MySpace page.
Biography
WHY first took shape in 1993 in Winnipeg Manitoba and soon after released their first album The Naked Soul and followed it up with The Rise and Fall of the Question Mark. After playing shows in support of the latter album, the band underwent a line-up change and did not release their next album, The Lazarus Effect (a medical term for the turnaround that AIDS victims have when put on AIDS meds) until 2002. It was also around this time that WHY began its involvement with the Make Poverty History campaign. Copies of the LAZARUS EFFECT album (the title song having already received air play in major markets across Canada) were also given out before U2 concerts in Ottawa and Montreal and were made available at Make Poverty History and on-line at cdbaby.com with a portion of the proceeds from the album going directly to the charity. The single Keep My Peace was also made into a video.In 2007, WHY released the hit album RED. The single (and title track) Red was serviced to radio worldwide. Red sat a #1 on Winnipeg radio station KICK FM's Top 40 chart for 4 weeks in a row, and was named "Song of the Year". The second single The Surface also charted, hitting #1 on KICK FM and #5 on THE Q FM in Victoria, BC and was named on the Winnipeg Free Press' Top 10 songs of 2007. WHY played many shows in Winnipeg supporting the album and appeared on A Channel's The Big Breakfast playing their hit song Red. That same year, WHY was also showcased in Canadian Music Magazine.
Soon after the release of RED, WHY underwent another line-up change. During this period, WHY released singles We Started Out (Somebody's Baby) and More or Less as part of Ray Zahab's next film Running the Sahara. This gained them further notoriety and the band soon was back with their now current line-up.
In late 2009, WHY began recording for their next album due out in the fall of 2011. During this period, they recorded and released their hit single and video Prisoner of Hope which charted as high as #6 on Winnipeg's KICK FM. The song was also picked up by several other radio stations throughout Canada. Devastated by the earthquake in Haiti
2010 Haiti earthquake
The 2010 Haiti earthquake was a catastrophic magnitude 7.0 Mw earthquake, with an epicentre near the town of Léogâne, approximately west of Port-au-Prince, Haiti's capital. The earthquake occurred at 16:53 local time on Tuesday, 12 January 2010.By 24 January, at least 52 aftershocks...
, WHY decided to donate 100% of funds raised by downloads of the song from cdbaby.com and iTunes to UNICEF. The video was also featured on UNICEF's website under the featured videos.
During the summer of 2010, the Prisoner of Hope video was entered into a contest for an opening slot before Bon Jovi in Winnipeg and made it to the finals losing to Canadian pop star Sierra Noble. Later that same summer, The video was again entered in Winnipeg Radio Station, Curve FMs "Rock on the Range" Contest and was again a finalist. Prisoner of Hope was played on Curve FM and members of the band were interviewed on air.
Since then, WHY has continued to record the rest of their upcoming album and has released Crash into the Future which is currently in rotation and charting. The band has also recorded a re-mix version featuring Grammy nominee Fresh IE. On World's AIDS Day, 2010, WHY played a benefit concert which also included music by Fresh IE at the Winnipeg Convention Center.
WHY continues to support Make Poverty History, UNICEF, and other causes and is committed to raising awareness about these organizations through its music.
WHY's Name
The name for the band WHY was inspired by lead singer Brian Cook. As Cook explained, "I was watching a TV special on John Lennon around 1992 and there was a part filmed the day he died and fans were all around his and Yoko’s New York apartment with candles and signs and one sign just said "WHY." No question mark, just three capital letters, and I thought, "That’s the most used word in our troubled world." Henry Thoreau said, "Why is the beginning of knowledge," so it seemed right for a band with so many questions."Current Line-Up
- Brian Cook (lead vocals)
- Todd Laurie (lead guitar/backing vocals)
- Dave Bergmuller (drums)
- Terence Karacsony (bass)
- Rob Langan (guitar/keyboard/backing vocals)
Albums
- The Naked Soul
- The Rise and Fall of the Question Mark
- The Lazarus Effect
- RED
Causes supported by WHY
Singer Brian Cook's devotion to WHY's causes began before the creation of the band. He was involved with World Vision and sponsored a child. He also acted as a World Vision representative showing films and speaking about the mission of World Vision. As time went on, the band has donated proceeds from their albums to The Global Fund, Make Poverty History, and UNICEF.Other causes
- MAKEPOVERTYHISTORY.ORG | International Site of the Make Poverty History campaign
- ONE.ORG | American site of the Make Poverty History campaign
- MAKEPOVERTYHISTORY.CA | A simple White Band is the symbol of the Make Poverty History campaign
- The Birth of Hope
- KEEPACHILDALIVE.ORG | Sponsor a Child's AIDS Medication
- The Global Fund | To fight AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria
- (RED) | Join the (RED) Campaign
- A Fan's Purpose | Fans helping to make poverty history
- Level Ground Trading Ltd. | A fair trade company
- EDUN | A fair trade clothing company
- Music Rising | An instrument replacement fund for musicians of the Gulf Coast
- Watercan
- OXFAM
- Impossible 2 Possible
RED Album
In 2007, WHY released its album RED. 2 singles, Red and The Surface had success in the band's home town, Winnipeg, and some limited success in other parts of Canada. In an interview with online magazine Interference, singer Brian Cook explained that The theme of RED was based on all the connotations which the color represents: anger, joy, passion, danger, heat, for example.After the album was completed, Cook became aware of the (RED) campaign and offered the use of WHY's single Red at no cost. However, although the song had some success, it was never picked up by the (RED) campaign.