Social media entrepreneur and musician Derrick Ashong
is the man behind the viral YouTube election video that has caused an
international media frenzy and given voice—and hope—to a young
generation of voters. "At a time when politics and popular culture
are still in an awkward mating ritual," The New York Times
writes, "Mr. Ashong…tapped into the youthquake that is shaking
up the campaign." Watched by over a million viewers, and counting,
the video was no mere fluke or blip: it was the public emergence of a
remarkable young man who embodies all that is right, and rejects all that
is cynical, about youth culture today.
"I have a lot of friends who were born and raised here who take
what we have for granted. Immigrants who come here fall in love with
the concepts and principles this country was founded on, even if America
does not always live up to them." Growing up in Ghana, Brooklyn,
Saudi Arabia, and Qatar, Derrick Ashong imparts a refreshingly wide-eyed,
vital and realistic perspective on democracy to a young generation of
Americans. His mesmerizingly articulate YouTube interview—ostensibly
about why he may vote for Obama—has struck a decisive blow against
those who believe that young people aren't passionate about politics—that
they don't know or care about the issues, that they are swayed by style
over substance. Young people have a different set of needs, Ashong tells
us. For politicians, to understand these concerns is to reach out to
an enormous, influential, discerning and fast mobilizing demographic
that is shaking the political process to its very core. Ashong has also
released a second YouTube video, which the Times calls, "an
impassioned seven-minute soliloquy on democracy."
Derrick Ashong—or DNA as he is sometimes known—has worked
for years to bring together the fields of business, media, technology,
youth culture, pop culture and politics. He is the founder of Take Back
the Mic, a youth-centered cultural movement that empowers young people
by using niche and viral marketing to bring music and other media to
a global market. He also serves as "Intellectual Hitman" at
Weapons of Mass Entertainment, a new media venture and creative factory
for popular culture, founded by Dave Stewart of the Eurythmics, that
links ideas, talent and capital in bold new ways. A Harvard grad, Ashong
has lectured around the world, including recent high profile talks at
the UN Alliance of Civilizations, and at Deepak Chopra's Alliance For
a New Humanity Conference. He is also a board member of Africa Action,
the oldest organization in the US lobbying for African issues. As an
actor, Ashong appeared in Steven Spielberg's Amistad. As a musician,
he is the leader of Soulfège, an up-and-coming band that won
Billboard's Best Hip-Hip Song of 2007 competition.
VIDEO: DERRICK ASHONG KEYNOTE
