In The Name Of Alan Kurdi (Single Version)

IN THE NAME OF ALAN KURDI

A song for those who must not be forgotten
On 2 September 2015, the world witnessed an image that was almost impossible to put into words: the lifeless body of three-year-old Alan Kurdi, washed ashore on a beach near Bodrum, Turkey.
A small child. A red shirt. The sea.
The image went around the world and became a symbol of the human tragedy behind the refugee crisis.
Later, I read in The Guardian about writer Khaled Hosseini, who was inspired by Alan Kurdi to write Sea Prayer. It left a deep impression on me.

Khaled Hosseini – Sea Prayer / The Guardian
The story stayed with me.
And perhaps more importantly: it isn't over. People are still fleeing war, violence, persecution and hopelessness. Families with children are still making the crossing by sea, in search of safety and a future.
That is where the idea for “In The Name of Alan Kurdi” was born.
The song didn't come easily. The lyrics were written, revisited, and set aside again. It kept feeling as though the words hadn't yet said what they needed to say.
Until, eventually, a version came together where everything fell into place.
From that moment on, a long production process began together with Jean B. Smit of Got2Mix. Step by step, the track was built: arrangements, recordings, new ideas, dozens of mixes and remixes — always guided by the same principle:
the emotion had to remain more important than the production.
Because In The Name of Alan Kurdi is, in the end, not a song about a single photograph.
It is a song about a child.
About parents trying to protect their children.
About people leaving everything behind because staying is no longer an option.
And about our responsibility not to look away.
Our goal is simple:
to call for attention — in the name of Alan Kurdi — for a better world tomorrow.
We would like to thank everyone who, directly or indirectly, contributed to the making of this production.
The technology used to make music today also became part of that creative process. Pro Tools and Logic Pro were important tools throughout the production.
Special thanks go to Bert Meulendijk for his musical contribution and his Kemper Profiles, which helped shape the character of the production.
But in the end, it isn't about the equipment, the software, or the many mixes.
It's about that one image that brought the world to a standstill in 2015.
And about the question of whether, more than ten years later, we still remember.

IN THE NAME OF ALAN KURDI

For Alan.
For every child who lost their future along the way.
And for the hope that we can do better tomorrow