Musicians Ellie Goulding and Aurora are among those who have collaborated with the sounds of Nature, which has been recognised as a musical artist in its own right.
The Museum For The United Nations-UN Live has announced the launch of global initiative Sounds Right, which will generate conservation funding through royalties obtained from music created by the new artist persona.
From 11am on Thursday, music from Nature will be available to stream on platforms including Spotify, Apple Music, Amazon Music, Deezer, Tidal and SoundCloud.
Goulding’s Brightest Blue remix featuring Nature uses sounds from the rainforests of Colombia while Aurora has collaborated with the newly established artist on a remix of her song A Soul With No King.
Lights singer Goulding, 37, said: “I am passionate about providing inspiration for young people to connect with – and help to protect – nature, through my role as a goodwill ambassador for the UN Environment Programme, and I’m really excited by the way this project harnesses music’s unique power to unite people and spark change.
“Our ‘Feat. Nature’ remix of my track Brightest Blue uses sounds from ecosystems across Colombia, one of the most beautiful and biodiversity-rich environments on our wonderful planet.
“It’s places like these that will directly benefit from Sounds Right and be preserved for future generations.”
Norwegian artist Aurora, 27, who is best known for her hit song Runaway, said: “The world is calling for us.
“And it has been for a really long time.
“We can feel deep inside of our very core that something is wrong.
“Working with my friend Fredrik on A Soul With No King has mended something in me.
“I understand where my anger comes from. And what to do with it.
“And having Brian Eno do a remix of our baby has been a dream.
“He and I are so connected, it felt very right to do something together. For the Earth. From the Earth.”
Other artists who have collaborated with Nature include Indian singer Anuv Jain, English indie pop band London Grammar and Venezuelan band Los Amigos Invisibles.
Eno has also worked on the project and his Sounds Right Mix version of David Bowie collaboration Get Real uses the cries of hyenas, rooks and wild pigs.
Alongside the “featuring Nature” songs with global artists, fans can listen to ambient sounds like wind, waves, rainstorms and birdsong, thanks to recordings from VozTerra and The Listening Planet, which is home to a large private library collection of nature sounds.
At least 50% of recording royalties from tracks by global artists featuring Nature will go to biodiversity conservation, collected by the charity EarthPercent.
Funds will be distributed under the guidance of the Sounds Right Expert Advisory Panel, comprised of world-leading biologists, environmental activists and representatives of indigenous peoples.
Katja Iversen, chief executive of Museum For The United Nations-UN Live, said: “Popular culture, like music, has the power to engage millions and millions of people, ignite positive global change at scale, and get us all on a more sustainable path.
“In a world where empathy is declining and many people often feel that their actions hardly matter, Sounds Right and UN Live meet people where they already are – on their screens and in their earbuds – with stories and formats they can relate to, and actions that matter to them.
“Recognising nature as the valuable artist it truly is will be a game changer.”
Cathy Runciman, co-executive director of EarthPercent, said: “It’s been fantastic to see so many brilliant artists excited to engage creatively with the sounds of nature and supportive of Sounds Right’s core objective to see that nature is fairly compensated for her musical contributions.
“We know that many artists care deeply about protecting and restoring nature and it’s a privilege to launch these collaborations via the Feat.Nature playlist and together generate positive impact for biodiversity.”
Museum For The United Nations–UN Live is described as an independent extension of the UN that “sparks global empathy, action and change through the power of popular culture and dialogue”.
