WEBVTT - Thanks A Lot 0:00:07.120 --> 0:00:12.320 There, hey, thank you, thank you very much. Would you 0:00:12.360 --> 0:00:14.880 wonderful singers all take a deep breath in with me 0:00:14.960 --> 0:00:22.680 like this and let it out the year's night. Ronald 0:00:22.680 --> 0:00:26.119 Reagan is president. Shows like Miami, Vice and Lifestyles of 0:00:26.160 --> 0:00:29.480 the Rich and Famous debut, We devour self help books 0:00:29.480 --> 0:00:33.640 and play Madonna's material Girl on a loop once again. 0:00:33.720 --> 0:00:39.080 Let's all take a deep breath in together and quiet. 0:00:40.680 --> 0:00:46.800 That's the eighties are overflowing with extravagance and excess power suits, 0:00:47.120 --> 0:00:50.720 mcmansion's and Wall Street brokers, with slick back hair and 0:00:50.800 --> 0:00:54.120 cell phones the size of a dictionary. I want you 0:00:54.200 --> 0:00:56.880 to sit back in your chairs for this next song, 0:00:58.320 --> 0:01:03.760 and all of you close your eyes and you can 0:01:03.800 --> 0:01:07.640 just hear my voice singing this song for you. I'll 0:01:07.680 --> 0:01:11.640 wait till all of you are ready. And Raffie, he's 0:01:11.640 --> 0:01:15.760 in his thirties. He's become the sought after children's musician 0:01:16.680 --> 0:01:22.319 Thanks so Long. His first three albums were huge hits. 0:01:22.760 --> 0:01:26.119 He has a national distribution deal his own record label, 0:01:26.400 --> 0:01:30.679 and he's packing out concert halls thanks for the clouds. 0:01:30.840 --> 0:01:36.280 So he's making real money. He buys a comfortable house 0:01:36.360 --> 0:01:39.880 with a big yard for his dog bundles fancy restaurants 0:01:39.880 --> 0:01:43.880 and fine wine become part of his daily life. Raffie 0:01:44.120 --> 0:01:56.240 has it all. Thanks so Lord, ands for all, Thanks 0:01:56.440 --> 0:02:02.120 for all come. So why does he feel like something's missing? 0:02:15.360 --> 0:02:18.600 I'm Chris Garcia and this is Finding Raffie, a ten 0:02:18.639 --> 0:02:21.760 part series from My Heart Radio and Fatherly in partnership 0:02:21.800 --> 0:02:25.680 with Rococo Punch about the life, philosophy, and the work 0:02:26.080 --> 0:02:31.840 of Raffie, the man behind the music. I was brought 0:02:31.880 --> 0:02:34.120 to a place of wonderment. I mean I had everything 0:02:34.160 --> 0:02:37.679 I've ever wanted in life, including being married to the 0:02:39.440 --> 0:02:46.440 the cheerleader from Arrival High School. I had a successful 0:02:46.480 --> 0:02:51.120 career now. Ralphie wrote Thanks a Lot in ninety at 0:02:51.160 --> 0:02:53.720 a time when he and his wife deb were literally 0:02:53.960 --> 0:02:57.519 living the dream. And listening to the song, you can 0:02:57.520 --> 0:03:03.079 hear so many emotions. Rafie is reflective and vulnerable, maybe 0:03:03.120 --> 0:03:06.480 even a little sad. I didn't want to just keep 0:03:07.560 --> 0:03:09.799 doing more of the same, because I'm not that kind 0:03:09.840 --> 0:03:12.200 of person. I'm not a well, let's do more of 0:03:12.240 --> 0:03:14.920 the same now. I'm not like that. I'm a person 0:03:14.960 --> 0:03:18.800 who grows with experience and then wonders what's next. So 0:03:18.880 --> 0:03:23.000 I remember in meditation, praying to the divine saying, You've 0:03:23.000 --> 0:03:25.799 given me everything I've ever wanted. What can I do 0:03:25.919 --> 0:03:29.639 for you? How might I proceed in a way that 0:03:30.080 --> 0:03:35.160 feels like service? I remember that moment and then, as 0:03:35.200 --> 0:03:38.520 if in an answer, I was guided towards writing a 0:03:38.520 --> 0:03:42.080 little song about a wee white whale on the goal 0:03:42.720 --> 0:03:48.920 and all the goodness that came from that song and 0:03:49.000 --> 0:03:51.960 that album, And I still listen to that album on 0:03:52.000 --> 0:03:58.360 occasion I'm blown away, how beautiful. I'd like to sing, 0:03:58.440 --> 0:04:03.160 Davy bluego with you, hump bam ba ba ba ba 0:04:03.160 --> 0:04:10.720 ba ba baaa, Baby Baluga in the deep blue sea, 0:04:11.280 --> 0:04:15.400 you swim so wild, and you swim so free heaven 0:04:15.680 --> 0:04:19.960 above and see below, and a little white whale along 0:04:20.040 --> 0:04:29.640 the gold, Baby Blue got Oh, Baby Baluga is the water. 0:04:30.080 --> 0:04:33.960 Baby Belugat was an overnight sensation. It's still one of 0:04:34.040 --> 0:04:37.719 Raphae's most famous songs. He wrote it as a tribute 0:04:37.720 --> 0:04:40.800 to Cavna, a beluga whale he'd seen at the Vancouver 0:04:40.920 --> 0:04:46.200 Public Aquarium. I remember doing a my first cross Canada 0:04:46.400 --> 0:04:49.800 promotion tour of an album. Was was for Baby Blue Gut. 0:04:49.800 --> 0:04:53.840 I remember being in Edmonton, Alberta uh and I had 0:04:54.120 --> 0:04:57.080 eight interviews and one day that was whoa. That was 0:04:57.120 --> 0:05:00.520 a lot. So I have sensed that there was something special, 0:05:00.600 --> 0:05:03.479 but you couldn't know until the years passed how big 0:05:03.520 --> 0:05:05.960 it was going to be. You couldn't imagine. Then you 0:05:07.200 --> 0:05:11.799 curl up, snug in your water, b the moon is shine. 0:05:11.920 --> 0:05:16.640 That song fast forwarded Raffie stardom. It connected with parents 0:05:16.760 --> 0:05:20.680 and their kids, an audience who was craving really good music. 0:05:21.720 --> 0:05:26.880 Suddenly everyone wanted a piece of Raffie, and advertisers wanted 0:05:26.920 --> 0:05:29.400 a piece of his fans and a little white way 0:05:29.440 --> 0:05:33.680 along the gold. You're just a little white way along 0:05:33.839 --> 0:05:43.680 the gold. Ralphie says. He was asked to play some 0:05:43.760 --> 0:05:48.159 famous venues, places like Madison Square Garden. It was a 0:05:48.240 --> 0:05:51.120 sign he'd hit the big time. But rather than join 0:05:51.200 --> 0:05:54.760 the likes of Bruce Springsteen and the Rolling Stones, Ralphie 0:05:54.800 --> 0:05:59.960 said no because the audience would be full of very 0:06:00.320 --> 0:06:03.920 very young children in a very huge environment, not the 0:06:03.920 --> 0:06:07.440 best environment for them, let alone me as a performer 0:06:07.520 --> 0:06:11.080 trying to reach them. Rapie couldn't stomach the fact that 0:06:11.200 --> 0:06:14.840 his face would be projected on massive screens just so 0:06:15.000 --> 0:06:18.960 kids sitting in the nosebleeds could catch a glimpse of him. Well, 0:06:19.120 --> 0:06:23.159 I'm talking about a musical performance in a hockey rink 0:06:24.120 --> 0:06:27.240 in front of twenty people. Come on, I guess who 0:06:27.400 --> 0:06:30.720 was like, it's not my idea of a good time. Yeah, 0:06:30.800 --> 0:06:32.720 especially I feel like with a crowd that young, it 0:06:32.800 --> 0:06:37.160 might be it might be difficult for everyone. That's exactly. 0:06:37.240 --> 0:06:39.000 And Chris, it's not even a concert hall. I don't 0:06:39.000 --> 0:06:42.200 even have a good acoustics. Come on, you know everything 0:06:42.240 --> 0:06:45.280 about it would be a challenge. Why would I throw 0:06:45.320 --> 0:06:49.919 myself into that? To me, my music for children and 0:06:50.000 --> 0:06:55.599 families has always been about the music, about the feelings, 0:06:56.600 --> 0:07:01.560 qualities and the songs that play in the minds and 0:07:01.640 --> 0:07:06.080 hearts of the very young. Raphie always put his fans first, 0:07:06.640 --> 0:07:09.720 and as his audience grew, he found that he needed 0:07:09.720 --> 0:07:14.320 to protect them even more. This is the rugged New 0:07:14.440 --> 0:07:20.600 g I Joe Adventure Team, Dane Joy Danger, Hide the 0:07:20.640 --> 0:07:24.080 Way Out. Here comes a Mathematics the Car with a Brain. 0:07:24.840 --> 0:07:27.400 Now make a much night? No. I remember they used 0:07:27.440 --> 0:07:33.080 to be television shows on Saturday morning for kids. They're 0:07:33.120 --> 0:07:37.800 often cartoon shows or other you know, and often you 0:07:37.880 --> 0:07:43.840 couldn't tell the commercial from the show itself. Highly exploitative 0:07:44.400 --> 0:07:47.840 of the young child who is not old enough to 0:07:48.000 --> 0:07:58.240 know the pitch aimed at their innocent minds. The primary 0:07:58.440 --> 0:08:03.960 goal of advertising and marketing is to train kids to 0:08:04.120 --> 0:08:11.040 become consumers. Basically, the corporate world discovered children as not 0:08:11.200 --> 0:08:15.600 just a viable market, but a really big market. Susan 0:08:15.680 --> 0:08:19.440 Lynn knows all about this. She teaches psychiatry at Harvard 0:08:19.480 --> 0:08:22.960 Medical School, and she spent her career researching the harmful 0:08:23.000 --> 0:08:27.320 effects marketing has on kids. Marketing to children is a 0:08:27.360 --> 0:08:31.280 factor in so many of the problems facing children today, 0:08:31.880 --> 0:08:37.839 childhood obesity, eating disorders for coach, sexuality, youth violence, family stress. 0:08:38.120 --> 0:08:42.560 Susan says children have always been marketed to through their televisions, 0:08:42.880 --> 0:08:46.360 but before the eighties, there were federal guidelines prohibiting how 0:08:46.440 --> 0:08:49.920 kids were targeted with ads. They were considered too young 0:08:50.040 --> 0:08:54.760 to understand the difference between commercials and entertainment. But as 0:08:54.840 --> 0:09:00.199 Raphae was reaching peak success, that all changed. The GET 0:09:00.200 --> 0:09:05.360 administration deregulated children's television, and according to Susan, all hell 0:09:05.480 --> 0:09:09.959 broke loose and it became fine to create a program 0:09:10.000 --> 0:09:12.720 for the sole purpose of selling toys. So that just 0:09:12.960 --> 0:09:17.120 changed everything. That's how we got shows like g I. 0:09:17.240 --> 0:09:21.200 Joe and My Little pony half hour infomercials masquerading as 0:09:21.240 --> 0:09:25.760 children's entertainment. Raphie had an audience of young kids, and 0:09:25.840 --> 0:09:29.680 he couldn't stand marketing to them that way. When we 0:09:29.760 --> 0:09:34.600 think of a young child's impressionable mind, respecting that young 0:09:34.720 --> 0:09:41.800 child for the whole person that young children are, why 0:09:41.800 --> 0:09:47.000 would anyone who cares about this young audience, who treats 0:09:47.040 --> 0:09:51.760 them with respect, who holds them with respect for their dignity, 0:09:51.760 --> 0:09:56.559 Why would anyone seek to exploit their innocence, their naivete 0:09:58.200 --> 0:10:01.240 These were the beginning seeds of Ralphie would later call 0:10:01.600 --> 0:10:05.680 child honoring, a philosophy he would fully embrace years later. 0:10:06.640 --> 0:10:09.760 He felt that kids should be respected as whole human 0:10:09.800 --> 0:10:13.480 beings and that they shouldn't be marketed to. You know, 0:10:13.600 --> 0:10:17.280 we who want to give young children our best in 0:10:17.400 --> 0:10:23.520 all our interactions, in all our capacities, are relationships with them. 0:10:23.640 --> 0:10:27.000 Our job is to do that with respect. It's just 0:10:27.120 --> 0:10:31.360 that simple. You would no longer exploit your own children 0:10:31.920 --> 0:10:35.480 from monetary gain than you what somebody else's. Isn't that right? 0:10:36.520 --> 0:10:39.880 In essence, the childhood years should be full of creativity 0:10:39.960 --> 0:10:43.640 and exploration. Ralphie would later go on to author a 0:10:43.679 --> 0:10:47.480 book about this philosophy. It included a chapter written by Susan. 0:10:47.960 --> 0:10:50.360 This is gonna sound simplistic, but I believe the children 0:10:50.360 --> 0:10:55.920 are people, and they're not teeny tiny adults and little bodies. 0:10:56.000 --> 0:11:01.319 Their minds are growing and developing. They're deserving of dignity, 0:11:01.400 --> 0:11:06.000 and they're deserving of kindness. They're deserving of opportunities for 0:11:06.040 --> 0:11:12.120 self expression. And Raphi shares those beliefs, and consumerism ran 0:11:12.280 --> 0:11:16.199 head on into those beliefs. Children are inundated, Our lives 0:11:16.240 --> 0:11:20.120 are intundated with commercials. We know that. But to try 0:11:20.120 --> 0:11:24.199 and take the most basic steps to minimize that exposure 0:11:24.720 --> 0:11:28.920 to commercial brands is a good thing. And we can 0:11:28.960 --> 0:11:32.520 all do it, especially those of us who are successful. Right, 0:11:33.280 --> 0:11:40.800 especially us, we're making enough money. If we don't say no, 0:11:40.960 --> 0:11:43.960 who will? I mean, really, all of us should. We 0:11:44.000 --> 0:11:47.959 shouldn't be in it for to to earn an income 0:11:48.080 --> 0:11:56.240 via exploitation. That is not okay, But soon Ralphie would 0:11:56.280 --> 0:12:02.680 have to put his philosophy to work. Before him, children's 0:12:02.760 --> 0:12:06.480 music wasn't really seen as its own distinct genre. Ralphie 0:12:06.520 --> 0:12:09.800 felt like kids weren't taken seriously, and what passed for 0:12:09.880 --> 0:12:17.760 children's entertainment was just a bunch of noise. Children's entertainment 0:12:18.760 --> 0:12:21.400 in some circles used to be viewed as a magician 0:12:21.760 --> 0:12:24.360 who put on a magic show. And he would say, 0:12:25.000 --> 0:12:26.679 I'm going to count to three and you're gonna say 0:12:26.679 --> 0:12:29.880 aberca dabra, And he'd go one to three and then 0:12:29.920 --> 0:12:32.920 people go abricadabra. He'd say louder, and then they'd say 0:12:33.000 --> 0:12:36.280 louder louder. Kind of said to myself, what the heck 0:12:36.320 --> 0:12:39.640 is that? I'm not doing that? You know? So, if 0:12:39.679 --> 0:12:42.640 I'm not doing that, what am I doing? Okay? I'm 0:12:42.679 --> 0:12:46.520 singing songs? Which songs? Am I singing songs that children 0:12:46.559 --> 0:12:49.079 can make their own that they can join me in? 0:12:50.559 --> 0:12:53.880 Ralphie stood out. His success put a spotlight on his 0:12:53.960 --> 0:12:57.280 young audience, new listeners who were hungry for good music, 0:12:58.360 --> 0:13:03.400 and advertisers were paying attention. As Ralphie's fame grew, he 0:13:03.400 --> 0:13:08.280 held fast onto his values, even if there was a cost. Sure, 0:13:08.320 --> 0:13:10.680 I knew I was probably saying goodbye to millions of 0:13:10.720 --> 0:13:14.400 dollars of potential revenue, but so what, That's not what 0:13:15.200 --> 0:13:43.319 my music makings about. Rafie had a big Hollywood moment. 0:13:43.800 --> 0:13:46.640 His song Raining Like Magic was featured in the movie 0:13:46.679 --> 0:13:52.079 fern Gully, The Last Rainforest. It was an animated film 0:13:52.120 --> 0:13:55.679 starring Tim Curry and Robin Williams. The story is about 0:13:55.679 --> 0:13:58.600 a fairy who tries to save a rainforest from laggers. 0:13:59.679 --> 0:14:03.600 It was Raffi's first time singing in a film. The 0:14:03.720 --> 0:14:07.320 movie spoke to Raffie. He thought anyone who saw the 0:14:07.360 --> 0:14:11.360 film would demand that rainforests be protected. It was a 0:14:11.440 --> 0:14:14.600 cause he'd grow to care about deeply. It felt like 0:14:14.640 --> 0:14:21.280 a no brainer. A few years later, Raffie says he 0:14:21.360 --> 0:14:25.240 got another call from Hollywood. This time the offer was 0:14:25.640 --> 0:14:29.720 more complicated. Dream Works, the powerhouse known for Shrek and 0:14:29.840 --> 0:14:33.160 Kung Fu Panda, had an idea. They wanted to make 0:14:33.200 --> 0:14:37.720 an animated movie about Baby Beluga, raff He's hit song. 0:14:38.680 --> 0:14:41.400 It was the kind of deal that would splash Raffie's 0:14:41.440 --> 0:14:44.800 beloved whale on screens all over the world. It had 0:14:44.800 --> 0:14:48.160 the potential to turn him into an international star and 0:14:48.320 --> 0:14:58.560 make Raffie crazy rich. We asked two questions. Would the 0:14:58.600 --> 0:15:03.600 film be directly advertised two kids via fast food outlets 0:15:03.600 --> 0:15:07.440 in every other form of direct advertising? Well, the answer 0:15:07.520 --> 0:15:11.480 was yes. And would would there be a whole host 0:15:11.560 --> 0:15:17.080 of cheap plastic made characters from the show sold probably 0:15:17.120 --> 0:15:20.600 through fast food outlets. Again, yes, well, that's all we 0:15:20.640 --> 0:15:25.480 needed to hear. Turning down an offer of a Baby 0:15:25.520 --> 0:15:31.120 Bluegot film from the makers of Shrek was easy. It 0:15:31.200 --> 0:15:34.360 took no time. But you said yes to the Fern 0:15:34.400 --> 0:15:38.720 Gully movie. How are those different? Well, only my song 0:15:39.120 --> 0:15:43.280 Reigning like Magic is in the Fern Gully movie. That's 0:15:43.320 --> 0:15:48.000 what I said yes to, So that's understandable. Um, the 0:15:48.080 --> 0:15:51.840 Baby Blue movie is entirely different in that that's that 0:15:51.880 --> 0:15:56.040 would be a film inspired by a song that I wrote. 0:15:57.480 --> 0:16:02.200 And when I learned that the way the film would 0:16:02.200 --> 0:16:07.840 be marketed would be exploitative of young children and their families, 0:16:08.320 --> 0:16:12.240 I said no. Trying to understand what it means, um 0:16:12.400 --> 0:16:14.960 for you to exploit your audience for commercial gain, Like, 0:16:15.000 --> 0:16:17.400 what where is the line I don't do it for you? 0:16:17.440 --> 0:16:19.560 I don't. I don't do it. You don't do it never? 0:16:20.040 --> 0:16:22.440 How can you even ask that? Of course, I don't, 0:16:22.920 --> 0:16:25.240 I don't. I've never done it. I wasn't accusing you 0:16:25.280 --> 0:16:28.040 of it at all. Ever, you know, No, No, I don't, 0:16:28.200 --> 0:16:31.200 I don't do it. I've never done it. I don't. 0:16:31.280 --> 0:16:35.120 That's not what I'm about. I can't and I will 0:16:35.160 --> 0:16:39.880 not participate in ventures that would do that. But you 0:16:39.920 --> 0:16:42.840 felt comfortable with providing a song to friend Gully that 0:16:42.920 --> 0:16:47.760 was okay, Well, yeah, why wouldn't it be, well you 0:16:48.160 --> 0:16:50.400 you wrote a great song for it. But and at 0:16:50.400 --> 0:16:54.040 the same time it was fern Gully was marketed directly 0:16:54.080 --> 0:16:58.400 to kids and had a pizza hut meal. Um, you know, 0:16:59.600 --> 0:17:03.000 no not. I wasn't aware of any of that at 0:17:03.080 --> 0:17:06.360 the time. In fact, if you look at what year 0:17:06.400 --> 0:17:10.359 it was, I think you know that there wasn't even 0:17:10.400 --> 0:17:16.600 a conversation. So you know, if my understanding these things 0:17:16.640 --> 0:17:21.600 grew along the decades, then good for me. But no, no, 0:17:21.760 --> 0:17:26.800 those things weren't even discussed at the time. At the time, 0:17:26.840 --> 0:17:31.560 I was happy to be contributing a song to a 0:17:31.640 --> 0:17:35.560 film that was, you know, looking at the devastation of 0:17:36.520 --> 0:17:42.400 um forest ecologies and so on, and and if indeed 0:17:42.400 --> 0:17:46.600 it was marketed in ways that were not what I 0:17:46.640 --> 0:17:50.200 would choose, I'm sorry about that. But I wasn't even 0:17:50.280 --> 0:17:57.840 aware of some of that at the time. Maybe it's 0:17:57.840 --> 0:18:00.280 hard to look back and have to dissect why you 0:18:00.320 --> 0:18:04.680 made the decisions you did, And I get it. I'm 0:18:04.720 --> 0:18:08.720 an entertainer. It's impossible to understand the ripple effects of 0:18:08.840 --> 0:18:13.560 every decision you make, and yet every decision you make 0:18:13.800 --> 0:18:18.280 is scrutinized by the public. But to the people around Raffie, 0:18:18.800 --> 0:18:25.639 he did live what he preached. Michael Kreeber is a 0:18:25.760 --> 0:18:30.359 musician and composer and a longtime collaborator with Raffie. To 0:18:31.720 --> 0:18:35.040 you can say, it's integrity, you know, his message, what 0:18:35.119 --> 0:18:38.919 he believes in is what he does, and that's the 0:18:38.960 --> 0:18:41.159 best word for it. I can I can find he 0:18:41.240 --> 0:18:44.719 has integrity and he comes from a profound caring, you know, 0:18:44.960 --> 0:18:49.359 for kids and for the planet and the issues that 0:18:49.400 --> 0:18:55.399 are close to his heart. Psychologists Susan Lynn was also 0:18:55.480 --> 0:19:00.000 paying attention to Raffie's decisions. Taking a stand against commercialism 0:19:00.200 --> 0:19:04.320 was actually it might have been in the best interests 0:19:04.359 --> 0:19:06.719 of his soul, but it wasn't in the best interest 0:19:06.800 --> 0:19:10.000 of his pocketbook. That's impressive to me. You know, he 0:19:10.040 --> 0:19:13.280 could have made a lot more money if he had, 0:19:13.320 --> 0:19:16.040 you know, done the Baby Bluga movie and commercialized it. 0:19:16.760 --> 0:19:20.440 There aren't a lot of artists who have done that. 0:19:21.280 --> 0:19:24.320 Raphie was trying to change the world by turning down 0:19:24.359 --> 0:19:27.600 one movie or endorsement deal at a time. But it 0:19:27.680 --> 0:19:31.480 was kind of like David against Goliath because the advertising 0:19:31.480 --> 0:19:35.000 industry was busy teaching kids how to nag their parents 0:19:35.119 --> 0:19:39.760 more effectively. It's called pastor power. They found that it 0:19:39.800 --> 0:19:44.440 was helpful if kids had reasons why they wanted something, 0:19:44.480 --> 0:19:47.920 like one example they use is g Mom, I really 0:19:47.960 --> 0:19:51.159 want Barbie's dream house because Barbie and Ken want to 0:19:51.160 --> 0:19:55.560 get married and raise the family. And then they identified 0:19:55.640 --> 0:20:00.359 persistence nagging, which is gimme, gimme, gimme, gim to give me. 0:20:01.280 --> 0:20:07.000 And one of an organization that worked around consumption did 0:20:07.000 --> 0:20:08.880 a study and found that there were ten and eleven 0:20:08.960 --> 0:20:13.359 year old kids who are nagging fifty times for one thing, 0:20:13.920 --> 0:20:18.000 and nagging is exhausting. All your parents listening right now, 0:20:18.320 --> 0:20:22.080 you know exactly what Susan is talking about. And Susan says, 0:20:22.160 --> 0:20:26.520 nagging effects how kids develop, undermining their critical thinking and 0:20:26.600 --> 0:20:31.000 emotional stability. Starting a baby off when their brains are 0:20:31.160 --> 0:20:35.640 just beginning to make connections, and when we know that 0:20:36.160 --> 0:20:40.199 habits and behaviors can be formed in early childhood, and 0:20:40.280 --> 0:20:44.479 to start them off, turning to screens for stimulation and 0:20:44.520 --> 0:20:48.919 for soothing instead of learning how to self soothe or 0:20:48.960 --> 0:20:53.200 to turn to other people or or the the outside 0:20:53.200 --> 0:20:58.160 world for a stimulation and for soothing. That works very 0:20:58.200 --> 0:21:03.399 well for the corporation, the toy industry, the media industry, 0:21:03.480 --> 0:21:07.800 and today the tech industry, but not so well for 0:21:07.800 --> 0:21:12.560 for babies and young children. It's the opposite of Raffi song, 0:21:12.760 --> 0:21:19.880 Thanks a lot, Thanks so long, Thanks for the sun 0:21:19.960 --> 0:21:24.080 and sky. That's a celebration of nature and the world 0:21:24.119 --> 0:21:28.640 around us. It's about gratitude and wonderment. But Susan says, 0:21:28.720 --> 0:21:33.200 advertising not only interrupts children's development, but it also takes 0:21:33.240 --> 0:21:39.000 advantage of our human flaws, and marketers count on selfishness. 0:21:39.119 --> 0:21:43.480 They count on me first, they count on taking care 0:21:43.520 --> 0:21:46.760 of yourself, and then they count on being able to 0:21:46.800 --> 0:21:50.679 convince people that they need whatever product in order to 0:21:50.760 --> 0:21:57.240 take care of themselves. Altruism is not part of commercial culture. Thanks, 0:22:00.800 --> 0:22:10.760 thanks for them night, Thanks a lot, Thanks for the stars. 0:22:10.840 --> 0:22:17.040 So what you're presenting when you present music or art 0:22:17.320 --> 0:22:21.040 to any audience is about the art. It's about the 0:22:21.200 --> 0:22:27.880 music and it's not to be confused or muddied by 0:22:27.960 --> 0:22:31.840 something else that you have no business associating with. It 0:22:32.400 --> 0:22:37.040 right for any audience of any age, especially for young children, 0:22:37.720 --> 0:22:41.080 because they're learning about how the world works, how the 0:22:41.080 --> 0:22:46.399 adults in their lives are conducting themselves. Thanks for the 0:22:46.600 --> 0:22:59.840 people everywhere, Thanks a lot, Thanks for all and for 0:23:18.400 --> 0:23:22.400 One of Raffie's most beloved events was the International Children's 0:23:22.440 --> 0:23:26.840 Festival in Vancouver. It's the longest running kids arts festival 0:23:26.960 --> 0:23:31.160 in the world. At its height, nine children and their 0:23:31.160 --> 0:23:35.399 parents gathered for music, theater, and puppetry that highlighted kids 0:23:35.400 --> 0:23:40.280 creativity and exploration, and for years, Raffie was the headliner 0:23:40.359 --> 0:23:46.040 of the event. They used to keep increasing the size 0:23:46.080 --> 0:23:48.640 of the tent that I would perform in the Raffi Tent, 0:23:48.720 --> 0:23:52.040 as they called it, because of the demand for shows. 0:23:52.080 --> 0:23:55.080 It was just amazing. I would do like eight shows 0:23:55.280 --> 0:23:59.000 in one week or ten sometimes. But all that changed 0:23:59.119 --> 0:24:02.480 in two thousands. Out of the blue, suddenly I was 0:24:02.720 --> 0:24:07.520 informed that oh yeah, uh, a car company was gonna 0:24:07.560 --> 0:24:10.920 have its cars on the lock of the festival. I thought, 0:24:11.119 --> 0:24:15.159 what the heck is this? I pulled out so fast. 0:24:15.680 --> 0:24:20.080 I was really stunned and shocked, and well, I felt hurt. 0:24:20.320 --> 0:24:27.120 I felt personally hurt that they do this. He didn't 0:24:27.119 --> 0:24:28.840 want anything to do with that, so he wanted the 0:24:28.960 --> 0:24:31.440 music to speak for yourself and the messages to come 0:24:31.480 --> 0:24:35.800 through on their own without you know, commercialism attached to it. 0:24:36.480 --> 0:24:40.080 Musician Michael Creeper says he never saw Raffie waver from 0:24:40.080 --> 0:24:43.320 his beliefs, and together they played some impressive gigs like 0:24:43.440 --> 0:24:47.159 Broadway and Radio City Music Hall. Yeah, Broadway, it was 0:24:47.200 --> 0:24:50.880 a big deal. That was thrilling. And to play all 0:24:50.880 --> 0:24:53.879 that beautiful music with these kids. He had a great choir, 0:24:54.640 --> 0:24:58.400 and the choir was assembled from the children of all 0:24:58.440 --> 0:25:02.119 these luminaries around New York like people he contacted. Everybody 0:25:02.160 --> 0:25:06.119 is super friendly. This was a pretty heavy time. They 0:25:06.240 --> 0:25:09.560 teamed up with Phil Ramone, a legendary producer who'd work 0:25:09.640 --> 0:25:13.720 with Billy Joel, Paul Simon, and Elton John. But even 0:25:13.800 --> 0:25:17.160 with all the attention the Hollywood stars, the media, spotlight, 0:25:17.200 --> 0:25:20.200 and the pressures that come with it, Michael says, Rafie 0:25:20.359 --> 0:25:24.200 was never tempted to commercialize his music. He's shown that 0:25:24.240 --> 0:25:28.800 there's a respectful way to treat that audience. That's really 0:25:28.800 --> 0:25:31.040 the key word, you know, It's a respectful way. We're 0:25:31.040 --> 0:25:33.400 not trying to take advantage you to make them buy stuff. 0:25:33.880 --> 0:25:35.840 He's a man of principle that to me is a 0:25:35.920 --> 0:25:38.400 very high principle. And when he talked about it. He's 0:25:38.480 --> 0:25:40.440 very passionate about it, and he says, you know, I 0:25:40.680 --> 0:25:45.040 just reaching not believed marketing two kids. It's not gonna 0:25:45.040 --> 0:25:49.320 happen with my stuff because it's you know, it's not fair. 0:25:50.359 --> 0:25:53.800 They're they're too vulnerable that they were exposed to millions 0:25:53.840 --> 0:25:55.719 of images as we know of day and night, day 0:25:55.760 --> 0:25:59.120 and night, most of it very shallow and commercial. It's 0:25:59.160 --> 0:26:02.440 people are selling you stuff, right, so why why give 0:26:02.480 --> 0:26:05.520 them more um and call it something to do with Rappi. 0:26:05.560 --> 0:26:09.360 He didn't want anything to do with that. Michael admits 0:26:09.400 --> 0:26:13.120 that walking away from lucrative gigs, and especially ones that 0:26:13.200 --> 0:26:16.800 really mean something to you is not so simple. Of course, 0:26:16.800 --> 0:26:19.879 it's hard, and I think the entertainment energy is gigantic. 0:26:19.920 --> 0:26:21.800 You know, if people are going to offer you money 0:26:21.880 --> 0:26:24.360 to endorse their product, or they're going to say we'll 0:26:24.359 --> 0:26:26.639 put on a big concert, it's just that our logal 0:26:26.680 --> 0:26:29.640 will be there. It makes it harder, right, for sure, 0:26:29.680 --> 0:26:33.399 it's harder. But maybe this is where Ralph he had 0:26:33.440 --> 0:26:37.240 an advantage. Michael says Rafi had built a loyal following 0:26:37.280 --> 0:26:41.080 before powerful advertisers came calling, and he gambled that his 0:26:41.160 --> 0:26:43.680 fans would show up at his concerts and buy his albums, 0:26:44.440 --> 0:26:47.880 even if he didn't commercialize his name. No, I don't 0:26:47.880 --> 0:26:50.439 know if those traces were easy for him, but he 0:26:50.600 --> 0:26:54.399 would know that I can sell records from their merit. 0:26:54.480 --> 0:26:57.760 I can do concerts because I'm a great entertainer. They 0:26:57.760 --> 0:27:00.399 will come, you know. So I think he knew that 0:27:00.520 --> 0:27:07.639 and therefore was able to resist some of the commercialism. 0:27:07.680 --> 0:27:11.000 I understood that I had to protect this music. I 0:27:11.080 --> 0:27:14.960 did what I needed to do to protect the artistic integrity, 0:27:15.640 --> 0:27:17.919 which basically meant that I was going to be in 0:27:18.000 --> 0:27:21.520 charge of how that album got sold and how it 0:27:21.560 --> 0:27:25.159 got advertised. It would never be advertised to kids, and 0:27:25.240 --> 0:27:29.400 it never was. As the promo posted that I designed 0:27:29.400 --> 0:27:35.560 said a delightful new children's recording. That's all that's said 0:27:35.840 --> 0:27:40.840 in the front cover. All I Really Need is a 0:27:41.080 --> 0:27:51.440 song in my heart. If you listen to enough of 0:27:51.560 --> 0:27:55.520 Raffie's music, you start to hear the messages the seeds 0:27:55.600 --> 0:27:59.840 Raffi was planting. Take Raffi song All I Really Need 0:28:01.880 --> 0:28:13.000 creen were drinking. Ralphie wrote it at a time when 0:28:13.000 --> 0:28:15.919 he had the big house in the flush bank account, 0:28:15.920 --> 0:28:18.520 a time when he was feeling uneasy with the pressure 0:28:18.560 --> 0:28:20.800 to make money off his audience by serving them up 0:28:20.840 --> 0:28:30.480 to advertisers. This was Ralphie's protest song, his way of 0:28:30.520 --> 0:28:35.160 pushing back against greed and commercialism. As Michael Creeper says, 0:28:35.760 --> 0:28:38.800 Ralphie's music is sort of like an onion. Peel back 0:28:38.800 --> 0:28:43.760 each layer and you find deeper meaning. The song sounds simple, 0:28:44.240 --> 0:28:47.960 but the message is pretty um. They're very universal messages 0:28:48.040 --> 0:28:50.400 and they're they're actually very profound messages when you think 0:28:50.400 --> 0:28:53.360 about it. All I really need is well, what is it? 0:28:53.560 --> 0:28:56.120 You know? Okay, well I need to eat and I 0:28:56.200 --> 0:29:00.760 need I needed love. Kind of a paragon of integrity 0:29:00.800 --> 0:29:03.680 to do what he does, because if you slip up 0:29:03.680 --> 0:29:06.760 and it's sort of, well, probs, just another commercial guy, 0:29:07.080 --> 0:29:09.560 but he's not. He cares about what he's talking about, 0:29:09.600 --> 0:29:12.120 what he's thinking about. Not everybody that has that kind 0:29:12.120 --> 0:29:14.640 of guts to do it. It's quite a bit of 0:29:14.640 --> 0:29:18.080 weight in your shoulders. You know. All of this is 0:29:18.120 --> 0:29:23.479 just an expression of love, respectful love. That's all it is, 0:29:23.760 --> 0:29:28.400 respectful love and action. We can all do it. Raphie's 0:29:28.440 --> 0:29:31.560 refusal to market two Kids was his first big awakening, 0:29:32.280 --> 0:29:35.640 but what came next would make him stop performing altogether. 0:29:56.320 --> 0:30:01.520 Next time. On Finding Raffie, we did our first program 0:30:01.560 --> 0:30:08.440 for television on global warming. I realized that global warming, 0:30:08.680 --> 0:30:12.680 we called it then, was a real threat. I called 0:30:12.720 --> 0:30:16.840 it in my script a slow motion catastrophe. I knew 0:30:16.880 --> 0:30:20.360 that we had to get going on it immediately. And 0:30:20.400 --> 0:30:23.920 we heard about this meeting and thought, wow, you know 0:30:24.040 --> 0:30:27.760 there's going to be all of these old men sitting 0:30:27.800 --> 0:30:33.120