The R. A. G. E.

April 26, 2009

The R.A.G.E.
Makes Beautiful Music With a Young Talent
By Rick Coates 4/27/09

You never know what might happen as a parent when you sit down and have a conversation with your children. In Lauri (Laura Belle) Newton’s case after a kitchen table conversation with her daughter Jasmine Lace Petrie last September, they started a “revolution.” That simple conversation has caught on in Petoskey as their “Revolution Against Garbage Everywhere” (The R.A.G.E.) and is gaining momentum in the community.
“The R.A.G.E. is a community-minded project seeking to encourage creative arts, awareness, and peace by bringing people together from all walks in an open stage and expo situation. It is a ridiculously huge idea born simply out of a conversation with my daughter,” said Newton. “She came home from college so upset after seeing a video in class about how much plastic is in the ocean and how animals are eating it and dying.”
Their conversation on garbage expanded beyond just the physical.
“My daughter said something so profound that a flood of thoughts came rushing in. She said to me: ‘Mom it is not just the garbage on the ground, in the air or in the water, it is the garbage that starts in our minds and comes out in the form of gossip, reported in the media and sung in the songs of today.’ I thought to myself wow, she is right,” said Newton. “There is so much gossip out there that is garbage that is so hurtful. Gossip has become a destructive force in our schools, communities and society in general. There is so much music today that promotes negative and hate and there is so much garbage coming out of the media. It is all having a negative impact on us.”

SERIES OF EVENTS
Newton came up with the concept for The R.A.G.E.
“I said to my daughter: ‘Honey let’s start a revolution because you’re right -- it is all garbage,’” said Newton. “So I got this crazy idea that if we had a series of events with a songwriting and poetry reading compilation project -- inviting all environmental and social issue organizations to represent their causes, we could get the information in front of songwriters and poets and direct their creative focus towards the issues that concerned others enough to start their own respective organizations.”
Newton and her daughter set out to find a dozen or so songs written by local songwriters that would bring to light “the garbage” that exists in society today. They held their first R.A.G.E. event last October and several songwriters in the area have submitted socially-conscious original songs for a compilation CD to be released later this year.
“I believe Jimi Hendrix said it best: ‘If there is something to be changed in this world, then it can only happen through music.’ I agree and that is what we are trying to do here,” said Newton.

LIZ THORP
Music changed their project in a way they never would have dreamed of when Newton and her daughter met up with 15-year-old Petoskey High School sophomore Liz Thorp last October.
“I was walking through the Perry Hotel lobby on my way to an event and there was this young lady playing the piano and I was mesmerized,” said Newton. “She was just playing for fun and had this angelic voice and her lyrics were very introspective. So I went up to her and asked her if she wrote songs and she said ‘yes’ and that she had written nine songs to date. I asked her if she wanted to perform at our next R.AG.E. event in November and she said sure.”
That event took place at Castle Farms in Charlevoix and it was Thorp’s first public solo performance.
“She blew everyone away. No one knew her in the music community and they were all so impressed,” said Newton. “Not only is Liz a talented piano player and a wonderful vocalist she is an unbelievable songwriter who has an understanding of what is happening in the world well beyond her years.”

GRANT WINNER
The Grammys apparently agree with Newton. While Thorp didn’t win a Grammy, she did win a grant from the music association for The R.A.G.E.
“In December, Liz submitted a grant request on our behalf to the DoSomethingNow.Org and The Grammy Foundation for one of their 20 Key Change Grants to encourage young people to create and promote social change through music,” Newton said.
Thorp is also one of a select 75 high school students being considered for the Grammy Camp this summer, a nine-day interactive residential music experience.
Thorp attended the Concord Academy in Petoskey and participated in their music program, but music isn’t in her immediate career or education plans.
“I want to work with animals, maybe become a marine biologist after college,” said Thorp. “Right now my goal is to keep improving as a soccer player and get a scholarship to play soccer in college.”

MUSICAL ROOTS
Lauri Newton sees a potential music career in the cards for Thorp. Newton knows a little bit about the music business herself. Several years ago she headed west and was signing backing vocals for a major label. She was on the verge of signing a major label deal as a solo artist when her mother became very ill, so she returned to Petoskey to care for her.
“I ended up never going back and I took a different path with my life and really feel that path has led me to The R.A.G.E. and my purpose in this world,” said Newton.
“Liz Thorp is a special young lady. So much is focused on the negative things that kids do in our society. But when you meet someone like Liz, so humble, so unassuming and a person who thinks beyond herself and sees that there is a world out there beyond what is in her own backyard, you know that the future of our world is in good hands. She never once has asked what was in it for her or what she was going to get out of it personally. So when someone who is 15 gets it to the point that by being involved for just one month they are able to write a grant to convince the Grammy Foundation that this project is important, that is impressive.”

NEW CD
Their focus now is to finish the R.A.G.E. CD project.
“We have six songs right now, including a song from Liz Thorp and others from the region,” said Newton. “We have this great song written by Adolph Cwik called ‘Recycle My Heart’ and we are looking for a group to give it a modern rock feel to it.”
For Newton, her daughter and the more than 1,000 supporters, R.A.G.E. is having a positive impact on Petoskey but they know there is still more work to be done.
“I wasn’t sure what to expect when we launched this, but the support has been overwhelming. My thought is if we keep doing it, the music will spread, breaking down walls, misconceptions, and thought processes, and we could change the world,” said Newton. “This is not a new philosophy, by any means as Plato, Thoreau, Emerson, Monet, The Beatles and Bono among others all had great quotes about the effects of music on the soul and the mind and this is just our way of extending those philosophies into Petoskey and Northern Michigan.”
Anyone interested in participating in The R.A.G.E., through financial contributions, submitting songs for the CD project or assisting in planning future events is encouraged to contact Lauri Newton. Learn more about the project at their blogspot itstherage.blogspot.com or by calling Newton at 231-838-1890.