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Singer/songwriter
Tracy Chapman has for years encouraged her fans to vote.
But in the wake of Florida's bitterly contested vote
tally that eventually led to President Bush's victory
in the 2000 presidential race, Chapman is stepping up
her efforts to get out the vote.
"I was just so horrified in 2000 with what happened
in Florida and with the way in which I feel our democracy
didn't actually work the way it should," Chapman
said recently by phone from San Francisco, where she
was rehearsing for a five-stop tour aimed at getting
Democrats to the polls in November.
The tour, dubbed "Western Swing: An Evening With
Tracy Chapman," kicks off today in Portland, Ore.,
and comes to the Land of Enchantment next week. Two
of Chapman's five performances will happen in New Mexico—
one at the Paramount on Tuesday and another at KiMo
Theatre in Albuquerque the following evening. The four-time
Grammy Award winner will also make stops in Seattle,
Wash., and Phoenix, Ariz.
Chapman's tour is part of a voter registration drive
engineered by Driving Votes, a Seattle-based political
action committee that is working to register Democrats
in swing states.
"I think they're trying to reach a lot of people
who have felt disenfranchised and alienated from the
voting process," Chapman said of the grass-roots
group.
Chapman's involvement in the upcoming election is not
unique among pop musicians. Some of the biggest names
in the business are hitting the road this fall in an
effort to get their fans politically motivated.
Beginning next week, MoveOn PAC— a group opposed
to Bush's re-election— is presenting a series of
rock concerts dubbed the "Vote for Change"
tour. Dave Matthews Band, Bruce Springsteen, R.E.M.
and a number of other well-known musicians will perform
at 34 shows in 12 Midwestern and Eastern states. Chapman
plans on performing at one of those concerts.
"I just feel strongly about this because I have
a stake in this country as a citizen," she said
about her own tour. "From my position, knowing
that African Americans weren't fully enfranchised with
the right to vote until the '60s because of discrimination
and women weren't enfranchised until the 1920s ... I
just have a real personal stake in this."
Jason Gruber, Driving Votes' director of strategy, thinks
that Chapman's message and that of other politically
involved entertainers will be especially appealing to
young voters, ages 18 to 24.
"These artists are incredibly credible with that
age group," Gruber said.
Chapman's self-titled debut album, which included the
hit single "Fast Car," ushered in a new era
of folk music in 1988. Chapman earned three Grammy Awards
the following year, including one for Best New Artist.
She earned another Grammy in 1996 for her single "Give
Me One Reason." Chapman has released six studio
albums, the most recent of which was "Let it Rain,"
released in 2002. Chapman, who lives in San Francisco,
said she will be in the studio next year working on
a new album.
If You Go
WHEN and WHERE: 8 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 28, The Paramount,
331 Sandoval, Santa Fe; 8 p.m. Wednesday, Sept. 29,
KiMo Theatre, Albuquerque
HOW MUCH: KiMo, $25, through Ticketmaster at 883-7800
or www.ticketmaster.com. The Paramount, $25, available
at the Lensic box office, (505) 988-1234
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