American Red Cross Youth

Twelve bands and artists from Southern California showcase their music on the Band Together: To Fight Measles compilation, hoping that through their efforts the American Red Cross-lead Measles Initiative will be able to vaccinate an additional 10,000 children. Measles is a leading vaccine-preventable disease that killed an estimated 242,000 people in 2006 alone.

Available on iTunes in North America, Australia, New Zealand, Europe and Japan, “Band Together” features music ranging from alternative rock to R&B.

“This is an incredible opportunity to discover up-and-coming artists before they get signed,” according to the album’s organizer. “And it’s an opportunity to save lives in the developing world. All proceeds go towards the Initiative. The CD is a great gift for socially-conscious friends and family.”

Each purchase can save up to seven lives.

Contributors include Kina Grannis, who signed with Interscope Records on February 3rd, Elle B., who has performed on Fox News, Michael Mazochi, winner of the LA Music Best Folk Album of the Year award, and Relax to Paris, whose frontman Ryan Gelber won the international John Lennon Songwriting Contest.

To purchase or gift the CD, search for “Band Together: To Fight Measles” in the iTunes Store.

Videos of Paul Dateh and Kina Grannis

The Measles Initiative is a partnership committed to reducing measles deaths globally. Launched in 2001, the Initiative— led by the American Red Cross, the United Nations Foundation, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention of the United States Department of Health and Human Services, UNICEF and WHO—provides technical and financial support to governments and communities on vaccination campaigns. Because of vaccination efforts, deaths from measles have fallen 68 percent worldwide – from an estimated 757,000 per year to 242,000 per year.