Grand Vision Foundation produced a song and a music video! “San Pedro Strong” is dedicated to the small town of San Pedro, the city by the sea – that is also part of the city of Los Angeles. It’s a music video composed, arranged and sung by residents of San Pedro that celebrates the neighborhood’s beauty as well as the challenges of the pandemic and features the voices of 16 amateur and professional singers of all ages.
“This is a song by San Pedro, for San Pedro,” says Liz Schindler Johnson, Executive Director of Grand Vision Foundation. “It is a unique artistic effort that comes from the heart.”
When the pandemic struck, Liz wanted to do something musical to cheer up the community. She was inspired by an earlier version of this song, written by Ken Creighton as a love song to his wife and their home in San Pedro. She invited Creighton to collaborate with Grand Vision to create a new version, “San Pedro Strong” as a way to uplift our neighbor’s spirits during the pandemic. Then, with the help of professional singer Windy Barnes Farrell on arrangement, and the talented voices of local singers, a song for San Pedro came to life.
Windy Barnes Farrell, who arranged the song with her partner Gail Johnson, is not only a local San Pedran, she is an internationally recognized R&B and Jazz vocalist with an enchanting voice. Windy has toured with Iglesias, Stevie Wonder and Michael Bolton and has performed extensively through China and Southeast Asia. This versatile musician slides easily between gospel, R&B, pop and jazz, and all her performances are elevated by her heartfelt performance.
“Working with Ken and Windy gave me a chance to be in on the creative process, then when we put the call out for singers, the song really began to take root.” says Taran Schindler, Artistic Director of Grand Vision Foundation. “So much of what we do at the Grand Annex is about bringing music into the community, but this project was different, it was an opportunity to showcase the amazing talent and enthusiasm right here in San Pedro.”
Participating singers include: Windy Barnes Farrell, Chad Bishop, Dustin Case, Ken Creighton, Nikholle Galarpe, Michelle Idell, Timothy Johnson, Jenna Nakadate, Marc Nimoy, Patti Orbeck, Serita Richardson, Sue Schmidt, Susan Tucker, Mae Weston, and Erin Wood.
