Music-packed bus tour rocks this way

If you haven’t heard of it yet, you will soon. There is a bus that tours the United States. It will go through 50 US cities between now and November 2nd. It will be loaded with logos, signs, and lots of enthusiastic people. It is the Rock the Vote tour bus, and its goal is to get you to vote. At least, that’s part of it. Rock the Vote was founded in 1990 by Patrick Lippert, and other members of the recording industry.

For those like me, who don’t recall what was going on back then, it was a time when a new offensive on the part of decency advocates was launched, culminating in the now-ubiquitous “Parental Advisory” stickers. It was also the same year that the high-profile trial of 2 Live Crew (in court for use of obscene lyrics in one their albums) was in the media spotlight.

Over the years, Rock the Vote claims to have registered millions of voters, and to have been instrumental in reversing the trend of loweringyouth-voter turnout. Since 1996, it has partnered with MTVs “20 million LOUD!” initiative, which currently has the tagline “Choose or Lose.” (I’m sure you have seen at least one of their catchy commercials currently running on TV). It has also campaigned for legislation that eases registration of voters across state lines, and in general has a history of fighting censorship in any of its forms.

So, how does this affect you? Well, for starters, they will be coming to Atlanta in the fall. It is one of the scheduled stops, although the completedetails are not yet available. The way the Rock the Vote bus operates is by simultaneously using high-profile artists to attract attention, and then proceed to attmept to educate young people about the importance of voting.

In the past, R.E.M., the Red Hot Chili Peppers, Coolio, Seal, LL Cool J, and a whole host of others have participated on previous tours, or with thePublic Service Announcements (PSAs) that were released by the association.

This year, the Black Eyed Peas, The Donnas, Hoobastank, The Dixie Chicks, Michelle Branch, Maroon 5, Rooney and many other well known artists will be featured at various stops.

For college campus shows, mostly new up-and-coming artists will be touring, but the website promises a special guest appearance from at least one of the bands mentioned above on each leg of the tour.

As a last note, it bears mentioning that Rock the Vote is not without controversy. While it claims to be a non-partisan group that aims to getyoung people involved in the voting process, one look at the website is enough to note a decidedly liberal slant to the issues addressed.

You might also find it interesting that Rock the Vote will register anyone to vote, regardless of political affiliation. At any rate, if nothing else, a free concert is coming into town this fall; be on the lookout for it. For up to the minute details, check out www.rockthevote.com.