Artists include Mandy Harvey, whose performance on America’s Got Talent earned Simon Cowell’s Golden Buzzer; Raul Midón, a Grammy-nominee who devoted his life to music after being told that blindness would make it impossible; Kenta Kambara, an accomplished aerial performer and dancer who performed in the 2016 Rio 2016 Paralympics closing ceremony; Signmark, the first deaf artist to be signed to a major record label; and Aliènette Coldfire, who placed third in France’s Got Talent.

Watch video here: https://youtu.be/nRvxvh37yCQ

“Being a part of this team is another reinforcement to me that what’s within you is so much stronger than the barriers we face.” Mandy Harvey

Performing in the latest True Colors music video, released worldwide today, the cast of 13 artists from 9 countries presents a new take on the R&B classic, You Gotta Be, by Des’ree.

Says Des’ree, original recording artist and co-writer of You Gotta Be: “This is a truly powerful video – so invigorating and energizing, elevating the sentiment of the song and its message. The artists’ introductions at the end add even deeper resonance to their already inspiring performances.”

Directed and produced in Singapore by Creative & Music Director Dr Sydney Tan and Video Director Jasper Tan, the music video takes the viewer beyond the artistes’ performances into a variety of “day-in-the-life” moments.

Says Dr Sydney Tan: “All of us, regardless of who and where we are, wake up and start our days and have the opportunity to listen and look up, to participate in choices and be fully human. We have the ability, whatever our circumstances and our geography, to experience and celebrate the ordinary yet wonderful moments that life unfolds.”

The technical process of producing this music video involved countless Whatsapp, Messenger and Zoom calls, monitoring the time across time zones, and using Google Translate in real time to communicate across different languages – not forgetting the process of piecing together the audio and video performances across the globe. “The most important aspect of the process, though, was to develop a relationship with each artist, such that trust and freedom would allow them to perform and be themselves, with each person’s unique spirit and energy coming through in a real and palpable way,” adds Dr Tan.

In full agreement, Mandy Harvey says: “Even though we haven’t met in person…you can feel that every person put their heart into the entire process. Being a part of this team is another reinforcement to me that what’s within you is so much stronger than the barriers we face. This is a reminder to reach farther and dream bigger. My hope is that people are encouraged to try!”

Says Ichiro Kabasawa, Executive Director of The Nippon Foundation, presenter of True Colors Festival: “People everywhere have been going through such a prolonged period of uncertainty, isolation and fear. We chose this classic, You Gotta Be, for everyone, everywhere at this time, to realize the potential in ourselves; to choose to be bolder, stronger, wiser, whatever each day may bring. It’s a reminder that when it comes down to it, we’re all human, living together in our one world.”

And in this regard, this True Colors music video comes with options that make it widely accessible, including Closed Captions (for the Deaf) & Audio Description (for the Blind) as well as an accompanying video Transcript (for the Deafblind).”