Sometimes we think about The Voice Project as a game of whisper, the message of mothers calling their children home from war that started in the small villages of Northern Uganda changes, transforms with artist we come in contact with and with each that passes it on. What endures is a message of peace, a call for empathy, for forgiveness and understanding, and simply by engaging in the conversation, that we can be better. Sierra Leone bore the brunt of brutality through many years with the battles for control of it’s diamond resources at the center of many conflicts including the 11 year civil. Here Bajah + The Dry Eye Crew effect an amazing transformation of not just the Ugandan message of peace but also of Paul Simon’s classic, infusing it with their own story. And what’s more than music’s ability to carry a message, to convey information, to educate, is also it’s ability to convey a spirit that words alone would struggle at. From the worst and most difficult situations we have seen the most beautiful expressions of humanity arise, perhaps because it is in those situations that they are needed most. In this case Bajah and the crew tell us at once that unbowed by the past, we can learn, we can change, and we can celebrate the ability that lives in us all to overcome that which has come before. It is some of the best that music can help us do. Thanks to Bajah + The Dry Eye Crew, Hotel Chelsea, and everyone who came out for the first NYC Benefit.