New Album From Psalm One Brings Much-Needed Spotlight to Youth Program

NEW YORK, NY--(Marketwire - Jul 10, 2012) - The American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (ASCAP) and America SCORES, a nationally acclaimed after-school program in under-resourced neighborhoods, are pleased to release Child Support, a collection of songs by Psalm One (Charm Lab Media) and America SCORES students from elementary and middle schools in Milwaukee, Seattle, San Francisco, Denver, Washington D.C., Atlanta, New York, Boston and Chicago. The songs were written and recorded in the fall of 2011 through the ASCAP Songwriter Residency @ America SCORES, when Psalm One headlined a nine-city tour for the program.

The album contains nine original songs -- all written and performed by Psalm One and America SCORES students, arranged by and music by Psalm One -- a tenth song, the first single, "Kids Right Now," features rapper Mikkey Halsted. The album will be available September 25, 2012 with all proceeds benefiting the ASCAP Songwriter Residency @ America SCORES.

PRE-ORDER CHILD SUPPORT and get FREE DOWNLOADS of "Kids Right Now (featuring Mikkey Halsted)" and "Stupid Girls Never Win (featuring America SCORES Chicago)," as well as see the "Stupid Girls Never Win" video and clips of Psalm One's writing and recording sessions in each city here: http://bit.ly/PsalmOne_ChildSupport.

The ASCAP Songwriter Residency @ America SCORES is a partnership between ASCAP and America SCORES that provides a platform for songwriters to easily connect and give back to their local communities by engaging and inspiring school students in under-resourced neighborhoods. Over the course of three afternoons, ASCAP songwriters -- from rising stars to Grammy Award-winning artists -- collaborate with America SCORES students to write and record an original song. The ASCAP Foundation, a public charity dedicated to supporting music education and talent development, funds the program.

Psalm One's nine-city tour grew out of a meeting between the songwriter and ASCAP Creative Services Executive Sue Devine, who created and produces the program with America SCORES in 15 cities across the country. Psalm One, who had participated in the Songwriter Residency twice before, was looking for ways to incorporate service into her tour model. Headlining a tour for the Songwriter Residency proved to be a great match.

"Artists want to be visionary leaders in their communities, but the business of succeeding in the music industry often takes up all their time. We created the ASCAP Songwriter Residency to bridge that gap and make it easier for an artist to engage with their local community in a way that is meaningful and long-lasting," Devine commented. "We're thrilled to have Psalm One not only collaborating with, but also bringing much-needed attention to such a valuable program like America SCORES, which inspires youth to find their voice. This is the power of music and the reason we all love it so much."

Psalm One worked with a group of 16-32 America SCORES students from elementary or middle schools in each city, brainstorming and co-writing a song during two classroom sessions and then recording the song in a professional studio during the third session.

"The images on television offer children from low economic backgrounds very little hope. Music videos highlight and glorify sex and violence without promoting the horrible side effects of reckless living," said Psalm One. "I have worked with the ASCAP Songwriter Residency @ America SCORES for several years and it is one of the most rewarding programs I've ever been a part of. I want to continue to reach children in the real world, to offer them real world options. I have to show them that, through education, they can transcend the current situation. I have to give them an alternate perspective."

In the fall of 2011, the ASCAP Songwriter Residency @ America SCORES led 13 three-day workshops in 12 cities. Psalm One headlined a nine-city tour for the program. Also participating were chart-topping songwriter Dave Berg (Carrie Underwood, Kenny Chesney) in St. Louis, MO; Grammy-nominated and Emmy-nominated songwriter/artist Lonny Bereal (Tank, Pleasure P) in Los Angeles, CA; Latin hit songwriter/artist Roke (Kumbia All Starz) in Dallas, TX; and Grammy-winning songwriter/producer Scott Jacoby (John Legend, Vanessa Hudgens) with Grammy-nominated artist/songwriter Maiysha (Eusonia Records) in New York, NY.

About America SCORES
America SCORES, founded in 1994, is a national youth development organization that combines soccer, poetry and service learning into a single life changing experience for inner-city youth. Serving approximately 7,500 children annually in over 140 public schools in 15 cities nationwide, America SCORES provides after-school programming during the hours when children are most vulnerable. Using teamwork as a unifying value, America SCORES' mission is to inspire youth to lead healthy lives, be engaged students, and have the confidence and character to make a difference in the world. Participants show significantly improved physical fitness, higher school attendance rates, and increased self-confidence after just one season in the program. America SCORES has been recognized for excellence by the National Education Association, Reading is Fundamental, Charity Navigator, the Centers for Disease Control, and received the 2008 Coming Up Taller Award from the President's Committee on the Arts and Humanities.

About The ASCAP Foundation
Founded in 1975, The ASCAP Foundation is a charitable organization dedicated to supporting American music creators and encouraging their development through music education and talent development programs. Included in these are songwriting workshops, grants, scholarships, awards, recognition and community outreach programs, and public service projects for senior composers and lyricists. The ASCAP Foundation is supported by contributions from ASCAP members and from music lovers throughout the United States. www.ascapfoundation.org.

About ASCAP
Established in 1914, ASCAP is the first and leading U.S. Performing Rights Organization (PRO) representing the world's largest repertory totaling over 8.5 million copyrighted musical works of every style and genre from more than 435,000 songwriter, composer and music publisher members. ASCAP has representation arrangements with similar foreign organizations so that the ASCAP repertory is represented in nearly every country around the world where copyright law exists. ASCAP protects the rights of its members and foreign affiliates by licensing the public performances of their copyrighted works and distributing royalties based upon surveyed performances. ASCAP is the only American PRO owned and governed by its writer and publisher members. www.ascap.com.