“It’s about my own personal journey; given who I am and given my family, I don’t feel I can be silent anymore,” says folk singer/songwriter Charles Alexander of his poignant and timely new single, “Immigrant,” which he plans to release on January 20th–Inauguration Day. “Inauguration Day is such an auspicious occasion. Given the recent conversation around immigration, instigated mostly by our incoming President, the timing was perfect and appropriate.”
Alexander, a lifelong musician with a background in biotechnology, came to the States from Malaysia more than 20 years ago; the songcrafter eventually relocated to Nashville to pursue a career in music as a songwriter and artist–while still holding down his “day job” at Vanderbilt University as a bioinformaticist mining information from genomic databases related to the Human Genome Project. Five years ago, Alexander, who has been featured on NPR, Billboard, “The Washington Post,” and “The Tennesseean,” transitioned into a full-time pursuit of music and artist management, and helms a successful business which assists artists in navigating the world of online streaming and growing their online presence.
Now with the help of producer, engineer, and multi-instrumentalist Tom Prasada-Rao, his beautiful song, a staple of his live set, finally sees the light of day.
“I hope I’m a fairly good, albeit unusual, representation of the American immigrant dream,” he explains. “But my dream came to fruition in part because I was welcomed with open arms by folks who were extremely generous with their hearts and their deeds. The America I know is true to Emma Lazarus’ poem on the pedestal of The Statue of Liberty:
Give me your tired, your poor,
Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,
The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.
Send these, the homeless, tempest-tossed to me,
I lift my lamp beside the golden door!
“I hope we never lose that as a nation,” he concludes.
Without further ado, Mother Church Pew is proud to present “Immigrant,” the new single from Charles Alexander:
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