Canadians Join Nashvillians For Flood Relief

Victoria Banks

Two weeks after Nashville and areas of Tennessee declared a disaster area due to devastating flooding, American and Canadian artists have joined to record and release a song and video for the Red Cross flood relief cause.

The project came together after Canadian singer/songwriter Victoria Banks penned the song “City of Dreams” after seeing the flood devastation in her neighborhood. She posted a simple guitar/vocal slideshow of the damage on YouTube and within days the video had gone viral. Soon Banks was approached by members of the local Nashville music community who were touched by the song. They wanted to make it into a “We Are the World” for Nashville, and offered to donate their talents to record it as a single and a music video.

Over forty artists contributed to the recording, ranging from legendary voices to new faces, Grammy-winning musicians, and hit songwriters, including Pam Tillis, Buddy Jewell, Danielle Peck, Michelle Wright, and George Canyon. Logo design, recording, engineering and mastering studios and services were also donated, and a production company volunteered to film the event to make a music video for broadcast on CMT and GAC.

“Every participant checked their ego at the door,” says Banks. “It was incredibly moving. The whole thing was done in a spirit of community, motivated by our desire to help our Nashville neighbors who have suffered so much loss in this disaster.”

Watch the “City of Dreams” video below.