Return to listing
Stamford, Conn. – April 7, 2021 – Americares, a health-focused relief and development organization, is tapping into the power of music to reinforce the continued importance of COVID-19 safety precautions with a campaign featuring original music and choreography. As vaccines roll out across the nation and states relax restrictions, the music and dance-based public health education campaign puts safety precautions at the center of pop culture. The “Wear a Mask” campaign encourages the continued adherence to COVID safety protocols, pairing an infectious melody with an entertaining dance—and scientific evidence.
The campaign targets the 18 to 34-year-old demographic, encouraging the age group to adhere to core COVID-19 health hygiene and precautionary measures, including mask wearing, physical distancing and hand washing. The campaign, which debuts today on World Health Day, includes an original song and choreographed dance. The audio track is on Spotify and, and Apple Music and the dance video, choreographed by Dezi Saenz, debuted Friday on TikTok.
“The COVID-19 pandemic is the biggest public health challenge of our time, but we can slow the spread—and save lives—with vaccination and continued safety precautions,” said Americares President and CEO Christine Squires. “We have developed a campaign and life-saving anthem that speaks to young adults, rather than at them.”
The campaign, developed in partnership with the Los Angeles-based creative agency Zambezi, is centered on a hip hop song called “Wear a Mask” that focuses on changing negative attitudes and behaviors towards following U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines.
The song urges listeners, “Wash your hands. Wear a mask,” and to “Listen to the science, not the he say, she say. Wear a mask and save a life—it’s just that easy. So we don’t have to live 2020 on replay. When mom and dad were selling toilet paper on eBay.”
“Wear a Mask” reinforces the importance of following safety protocols for listeners feeling lured into socialization by the perceived feelings of safety that have come with the vaccine rollout. The lyrics remind people this is not the time to ease up on safety protocols and illustrates how easy it is for everyone to play their part by implementing these simple practices, reminding, “if we spreading something, let’s spread a little thoughtfulness.” The song was written and produced by The 87s and packaged by Hallwood Media, led by former Geffen Records president Neil Jacobson.
“This project was an incredible opportunity to create a hit record and save lives,” said Jacobson. “We were honored to work on such an important public health campaign.”
The campaign targets young adults, the age group consistently reporting the most COVID-19 infections—and least likely to report taking COVID-19 safety precautions, according to a CDC survey. As vaccine rollouts, state re-openings and warmer months lead to an increase in social gatherings, relaying the core message of the campaign remains critical.
“Vaccines are going into arms, but COVID-19 remains the number one cause of death in the U.S. The next few months are critical,” said Americares Public Health Specialist Brenda Rivera-García, DVM, MPH. “By adopting behaviors that prevent the spread of the disease, young adults have an opportunity to protect themselves, as well as vulnerable family members at higher risk of complications from COVID-19.”
The majority of Americans ages 18 to 29 are currently living with at least one, or both, of their parents according to Pew Research Center—the most since the Great Depression. In addition to having a positive impact on their family’s health, the Wear a Mask campaign encourages young adults to influence their peers to follow these safety protocols as well.
The campaign is part of Americares comprehensive response to the COVID-19 pandemic in over 30 countries. In addition to health education, Americares is providing primary care services, medicine, supplies, training and mental health support for health workers. To date, Americares has provided more than 14 million protective supplies, including PPE, masks, gloves and disinfectants to control the spread of COVID-19.
“Wear a Mask” can be streamed and downloaded on Spotify and Apple Music.
To learn more about the campaign visit youngvax.org