“The Road To Nashville Saved My Life”

Millions of songwriters/musicians are given access to free services from professional therapists, psychologists and life coaches

“I am a single parent musician with the ongoing situation of survival in a post COVID world. When this offer was introduced, I was very intrigued about how this would work, but once I contacted the team and submitted my song, I had a wonderful person holding my hand through the process. Mental health illness can creep up anytime. With all the pressure to keep up with bills and feed my family, my sanity was boiling over. But thanks to the free sessions, which are priceless, The Road to Nashville program saved my life and especially my daughter’s too.”

— E.P. from North England, The Road To Nashville participant

With the rise in issues related to mental health becoming more prevalent in global news headlines, The Road to Nashville: Liverpool International Song Contest ensures that the creative community isn’t left behind. Founded by The Unity of Faiths Foundation (TUFF) via a partnership between the mayors and city councils of the cities of Nashville, TN, and Liverpool, UK, The Road to Nashville provides complimentary access to mental health professionals for anyone that applies.

Since launching in May, 21,411 artists have submitted nearly 22,421 songs representing talent from 35 countries. Of those who have submitted a song, over 3,345 musicians have opted-in for mental health services and counseling. Submissions closed Aug. 31, and the top 10 finalists will perform live before judges in Nashville at the Legendary EXIT/IN on John Lennon’s birthday Oct. 9, 2022.

Listen to the songs that were chosen as the top 50 out of over 22,000 submissions here: roadtonashville.us/semi-finalists
To learn more about TRTN or to make a donation, visit roadtonashville.us.

“It’s an honor to have partnered with the mayor of Liverpool to highlight mental health awareness in the music industry,” said Nashville Mayor John Cooper. “What’s more, The Road to Nashville International Song Contest received more than 15,000 song submissions. But even more importantly is that the mental health and music initiative had over two thousand artists indicate that they wanted access to a mental health professional. I’m grateful Nashville and Liverpool are shining a light on this topic.”

“It’s well-documented that the pandemic had a huge impact on people’s mental health, and it’s incredibly important we do as much as we can to tackle the surge in cases that are been reported. I’m proud that Liverpool is working with our sister city Nashville, TUFF and all The Road to Nashville partners in supporting musicians and songwriters across the world and making this project a massive success.”
– Liverpool, U.K. Mayor Joanne Anderson

“In just over 3 months, we have an outpouring of songs submitted from around the world, and to offer free mental health counseling is truly gratifying. I am proud of the bridge we have forged between our music cities, Liverpool and Nashville and the impact we are making globally.”
– Jeff Syracuse, Nashville Metro City Council Member

“Mental illness is the new pandemic. When COVID-19 spread around the globe, we saw connection and community get erased from our lives overnight as we sheltered in place to curb transmission rates. When our day-to-day interactions were so drastically changed, we didn’t account for the long-term impacts of that shift. Mental health practices and the equitable access to those therapies are imperative if we want to make a real swing back to kindness, safety and security. We are so grateful to be able to support these musicians and songwriters through the help of incredible partners. We cannot thank the artists enough that have stepped up to share their own stories and struggles. We are so fortunate that via a partnership with Music Crowns that we were able to connect with millions through their online platforms.”
– Dr. Shamender Talwar, co-founder of TUFF

The Road to Nashville is partnered with the following to present and support our 2022 contestants:

• Liverpool City Council
• Metropolitan Government of Nashville & Davidson County
• Visit Music City
• Musicians Hall of Fame & Museum
• Country Music Association
• Music Crowns
• Exit/In
• BMI
• SAE Institute
• The Cavern Club Liverpool
• Middle Tennessee State University
• BBC
• Porter’s Call
• Gaylord Opryland Hotels
• Hampton Inn & Suites Nashville Downtown Capitol View

About Liverpool International Song Contest

Last year, Liverpool City Council played a role in supporting the International Song for Kindness which was created by the charity TUFF (The Unity of Faiths Foundation) to support their wider goals of empowering young people and promoting acceptance, equality and respect for other cultures.

The Liverpool International Song Contest is a vehicle used to tackle discrimination and the stigma of mental health, providing support for those most in need and developing a bespoke mental health service infrastructure specifically tailored toward those in the creative sector.

Participants in the 2020/21 Liverpool International Song Contest were invited to attend one of 23 workshops across the Liverpool City region, delivered by TUFFs Music division and led by TUFFs co-founders Anna Prior and Dr. Shamender Talwar FRSA (renowned social psychologist) and Liverpool based producer Daniel Xander BSc MA (TUFFs Head of Music). These engaging workshops provided education in music, production and human values, and provided education on mental health and one to one counselling with mental health practitioners.

In addition to the thousands who attended the in-person workshops, TUFF also provided an online version of the syllabus for those unable to attend through medical reasons, Covid-19 and/or mental health disorders such as social anxiety and depression. This online digital format provided people with the same opportunities and one to one counselling, delivered in a way that best suited their needs.

The connection with Liverpool came about because TUFF developed the global #KIND20 campaign as a way to demonstrate and promote social integration, which reached a staggering 6.5 million people from around the world. After conversations with The Cavern and other organizations in Liverpool, they came up with the idea of an International Song Contest to celebrate what would have been John Lennon’s 80th birthday. Kevin McManus, Head of UNESCO City of Music, was involved on behalf of the city and attended the final event at The Cavern in October 2021. The songs were judged by an impressive panel of industry figures (including Adele’s agent and respected musician/songwriter Andrew Roachford MBE who had a number of hits with his band Roachford) who all attended the event in Liverpool. Entries were received from 28 countries in the inaugural contest.

About TUFF — The Co-Organizer

The Unity of Faiths Foundation (TUFF) is a British secular charitable organization working in four continents. They bridge community sectors, organizations and government by rebuilding social integration and global community cohesion. TUFF also empowers youth through participation in sports, music and science. Teaching education in human values, acceptance of integration, individual liberty, gender equality, understanding environment, respect for other cultures, the rule of law and democracy. They have been established since 2011 and have the support and acknowledgments of many dignitaries like H.H Pope Francis, H.M the Queen, President Barack Obama to name a few. The ultimate goal is to share kindness and facilitate the integration and empowerment of those people who do not have a voice, due to numerous challenges and obstacles they face in their daily lives.

To make learn more or make a donation to TUFF, visit: tuff.earth.

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