Friday, July 27, 2012

YouTube Video Celebrates BYU Quarterback



   They’re at it again.   Last year’s popular original rock and roll song “BYU Rise Up” celebrated team BYU Rise Up Riley (unauthorized) version

    This year, the far-flung musicians raised in Utah County have a new song and video that is expected to push the envelope even more.   Rise Up Riley, is a clever and catchy blues song and uses very memorable lyrics to tout Riley Nelson’s football prowess.  

   James Brown dancing is peppered throughout the video while the bulk of video highlights Riley Nelson’s amazing play from last year.  It also showed Nelson's famous hair that was cut due to BYU's strict hair regulations.

   In the video, Nelson was also shown with no hair at all, in defiance to the university's  strict rules on men's hair length, which has been a controversial issue in the campus.

  This song has been dubbed “The Unauthorized Riley Nelson Song” –“unauthorized” perhaps as a dig against the school’s lack of interest in using the first song for marketing of the team last year.  

The song that BYU didn't use is now trending on Youtube and Google.
  Ironically, the song that BYU rejected in the one now trending on Youtube and is getting tens of thousands of views and was also of Google's frontpage.

 Ken Van Wagenen, guitarist and songwriter, points out that the school put together a great football product.  But missed on a very important thing.

   "Last year, BYU seemed to miss the obvious marketing synergies we offered them with our song," Van Wagenen said.

   “Yeah, we were disappointed, we did everything we could to make sure they (BYU marketing) saw the song last year.   We took it to the marketing guys and BYUtv. They just decided to use a song from the 80's.  Maybe they’ll like this new (2nd) song,” he added.

   As on the first video effort, this song was not recorded in a flashy expensive Hollywood recording studio, but rather through file sharing tracks over the internet.

  All music was then mixed and the video assembled by drummer/producer, Todd Mitchell, in “Man Cave Studios” in his Orem home.     The musicians expect to continue writing and recording other songs and sharing them over YouTube for the small but growing fan base.   Rock on guys and good work.
   To see the new video click here:BYU Rise Up Riley Nelson (unauthorized) version

Thursday, June 28, 2012

"Rise Up" – BYU’s New Football Song --The Irony



Brigham Young University’s sports song, "Rise Up"  was was offered for free use to BYU last year,  but was not used. Ironically, the video is now  trending on Youtube and on Google's first page!

BYU’s sports message of the year, "Rise Up"  has been all over the campus, at the bookstore, on t-shirts and will be shouted from the stadium at all home football games this fall. But what isn’t yet known is how four local musicians now scattered across the country have united as BYU football fans to contribute the new rock and roll song to celebrate this year's "Rise Up" theme.

This song, aptly titled "Rise Up" wasn’t recorded in an impressive recording studio, but through file-sharing on the internet. The musicians have never been in the same room together and have never laid eyes on one another while writing and recording the song.

The sports song that was was offered for free to BYU last year  but was not used, is now actually trending on Youtube and on Google's first page.

Prior to last year, it had been 25 years since they worked together. The musicians first reunited in 2010 at the Rock and Roll Fantasy Camp and performed live in San Francisco with one of their teenage influences, Mark Farner of Grand Funk Railroad.

In San Francisco, Farner and the musicians wrote and performed 2 original songs and also covered Grand Funk's top 40 charting hits from the early 70s "Rock and Roll Soul" to a packed audience. The musicians promised to stay connected this time and write the original music highlighting favorite memories from their lives.

Discussing the reaction received on their song  version of "Rise Up," Kevin Wright, bass guitarist from Texas, said he was proud of the song and happy it has been received well.

“We wanted to do something for the team and the University. I hope it is used in whatever way fires-up the fan base and adds even more excitement to the games," he added.

Other musicians include guitarist/songwriter Ken Van Wagenen, now residing in Los Angeles, musician Doug Lyman, Marc Allen, keyboard player in Nashville, David Thomas, Utah vocalist, and Todd Mitchell, drummer, producer, and sound engineer.

To view the "BYU Football Cougars Rise Up" on youtube, click this link:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rp2bkPB5ZF4

Friday, May 4, 2012

How BYU's "Rise Up" Song and Music Video Were Created


    Brigham Young University’s sports message of the year, "Rise Up" has been all over the campus, at the bookstore, on t-shirts and will be shouted from the stadium at all home football games this fall. 

   But what isn’t yet known is how four local musicians now scattered across the country have united as BYU football fans to contribute the new rock and roll song to celebrate this year's "Rise Up" theme.

   This song, aptly titled "Rise Up" wasn’t recorded in an impressive recording studio, but through file-sharing on the internet. The musicians have never been in the same room together and have never laid eyes on one another while writing and recording the song.

   Prior to last year, it had been 25 years since they worked together. The musicians first reunited in 2010 at the Rock and Roll Fantasy Camp and performed live in San Francisco with one of their teenage influences, Mark Farner of Grand Funk Railroad.

   In San Francisco, Farner and the musicians wrote and performed 2 original songs and also covered Grand Funk's top 40 charting hits from the early 70s "Rock and Roll Soul" to a packed audience. The musicians promised to stay connected this time and write the original music highlighting favorite memories from their lives.

 Discussing the reaction received on their song  version of "Rise Up," Kevin Wright, bass guitarist from Texas, said he was proud of the song and happy it has been received well.

   “We wanted to do something for the team and the University. I hope it is used in whatever way fires-up the fan base and adds even more excitement to the games," he added.

   Other musicians include guitarist/songwriter Ken Van Wagenen, now residing in Los Angeles, musician Doug Lyman, Marc Allen, keyboard player in Nashville, David Thomas, Utah vocalist, and Todd Mitchell, drummer, producer, and sound engineer. 

   To view the "BYU Football Cougars Rise Up" on youtube, click this link:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rp2bkPB5ZF4