Diversity 101: Just Think of It as a Lilith Fair for Under-30 Males

Despite such notable efforts as the Tibetan Freedom Concerts, Net Aid and the the Jubilee 2000 campaign involvement of Bono, Perry Farrell and others, the 1900s didn’t exactly end on a note of social responsibility in the rock world. The lasting image of last year: the Woodstock fiasco and poster boys Fred Durst and Kid Rock promoting their brands of me-first hedonism.

But a team of concert organizers is hoping to tap into the social consciousness of the ‘60s and the melting-pot spirit that fueled the first few Lollapalooza tours for a series of shows to start the 2000s off on a note of activism.

To be called Diversity 101, the venture is being organized by former Columbia Records artists and repertoire executive Nick Terzo (who signed Alice in Chains), former Columbia and Revolution Records executive and concert promoter Missy Worth (who also was involved in early Lollapaloozas) and the powerful Creative Artists Agency, whose clients range from Santana to Limp Bizkit. Plans call for a three-week, 12-city trek designed to promote tolerance and understanding.

The Southern Poverty Law Center, an organization with roots in the ‘60s civil rights movement, will be the primary beneficiary and co-presenter. The trek will be held in June, July or August, depending on the availability of the headlining acts being pursued.

Consistent with the diversity theme, offers have been made to rapper Nas, rock bands the Foo Fighters and Live, and singer-songwriters Natalie Merchant and Ben Harper. None has committed to the tour so far, but representatives of several note it’s still early in the planning.

“What we’re really trying to do is bring enough awareness to the issue of hate crimes and what can or can’t be done about them in your city,” says Worth, for whom this marks a return to the music business after a hiatus of several years. “We want to have alongside the concert a big tent with debates and discussions going on and laptops set up with tech people showing hate Web sites and anti-hate sites.”

Worth praises the Lilith Fair tours of the past three years for addressing similar issues, but rather than the female-heavy audience of those shows, she wants this to attract the very same young male demographic that turned Woodstock into a morass of fires and alleged sexual assaults.

“This is really for 15- to 30-year-olds, male-oriented,” she says. “That’s where we have to start teaching that it can be different--show people what hate is.”

It’s an idea that appeals to many in the concert business--as long as it has enough star power behind it.

“In theory this is a good idea and a great cause,” says Eric Wilson, Nas’ booking agent, who adds that his client is waiting for more information on the plans before deciding whether to participate. “Will it sell tickets? At the end of the day, these festivals are artist-driven, and that’s something I think [the organizers] are taking into account. You can see that based on the festivals that have come and gone. Regardless of the cause, it doesn’t matter unless the artists are going to be there.”

AMBER WAVES: It’s one thing to launch a new act with a familiar old song--some pop favorite that can open doors and ears. But “America the Beautiful”?

That’s the song being used as the calling card for Plus One, a vocal “boy group” quintet signed recently by producer-executive David Foster to his Atlantic-distributed 143 Records label. It helps that the group members are devout Christians and are oriented toward the Christian-pop market--a realm where sweeping red-white-and-blue gestures play well. But initial reaction to the track has shown mainstream crossover potential.

Foster, a 14-time Grammy winner whose credits as a producer include Whitney Houston and Barbra Streisand, says the notion of doing the song came when he and his wife, songwriter Linda Thompson, were organizing a fund-raiser for Vice President Al Gore’s campaign for the presidency.

“We thought, ‘Wouldn’t it be great to do this, which is the better song [over the national anthem]?’ and were inspired by the way Ray Charles did it years ago,” says Foster, a Canadian national who is set to become a U.S. citizen next month. “So we did a demo version and people loved it.”

Among those who loved it was Rick Dees of Top 40 station KIIS-FM (102.7), who played it on the air and added it to his Web site. The song will be featured on Plus One’s debut album, due in May, alongside new material being written and produced by, among others, Foster, Walter Afanasieff (who has worked with Mariah Carey and Celine Dion) and Brian Rawling (who co-produced Cher’s “Believe”).

BACK TO WORK: Johnny Marr, the guitarist who was the architect of the Smiths’ sound and therefore a key figure of ‘80s British rock, sat out much of the ‘90s. But now he’s gearing up for a big return.

Marr has just finished recording his debut solo album with his new band, the Healers, which in addition to him on guitar and vocals features drummer Zak Starkey (Ringo Starr’s son, who filled the Keith Moon role in the recent Who reunion); and former Dub Pistols member and William Orbit collaborator Lee Spencer on synthesizers.

Jay Schatz, a marketing and sales executive at MCA-distributed Radioactive Records, is a longtime friend of Marr and is helping him shop the project. Schatz describes the music as “guitar-driven, high-tech rock with dance and glam influences,” and notes that Marr is enthusiastic about returning to the concert touring world. The last time he toured was with Electronic, his sometimes-partnership with New Order’s Bernard Sumner, in 1991. Plans are being made for a possible series of dates in L.A. clubs to get things going in spring.