The world urgently needs to break up with gasoline. And a song is a great way to get people to sing along and get comfortable with that idea. That’s why we wrote the song, Gasoline Breakup. The lyrics describe our frustrations with gasoline through the lens of a romance gone wrong.
Gasoline Breakup
Published November 13, 2019
Standard YouTube Licence
Lyrics – you can sing along…
The lyrics are inspiring and so empowering. And oh yes, they’re fun too. Just think how great it feels to tell your no-good lover to take a hike or hit the road.
You took me for a ride, and now we’re lost
I’m choking on your pollution trip
You’re making me cough…You’re turning me off
I’m breaking this relationship
Gasoline, gasoline, you’re driving me insane
Gasoline, gasoline, the world’s aflame
Gasoline, gasoline, I found someone new
Someone better, better than you
We had a good run but now we’re done
You’re poisoning our atmosphere
You don’t even care, pumping dirt in our air
We gotta leave you in the ground
Gasoline, gasoline, you’re driving me insane.
Gasoline, gasoline, the world’s aflame.
Gasoline, gasoline, I found someone new
And I’m leaving…leaving you.
The story behind Gasoline Breakup
“Our love affair with gasoline is over. And it’s time for a breakup song.” Franke James, Billiam James
Our goal is to inspire people to reject gasoline and embrace alternatives. Stopping gasoline use is the most effective way to address air pollution and climate change. Ultimately we want to portray gasoline as unattractive, unhealthy, and socially unacceptable. This kind of attitude shift will help open the door to the systems and policies change that we need to address the climate crisis.
It all started when Matthew Metz, co-executive director of Coltura, whose mission is a gasoline-free America, read “My SUV and Me Say Goodbye” story, about us selling our only car in 2007.
He came to Vancouver and invited me to create a visual story about ending gasoline use. However, I told him I’d like to do something different—write a song about breaking up with gasoline. Songs tell stories and can address tough issues that many people don’t want to talk about. But in a song, people actually sing along making it ideal for talking about climate change. Songs get into your head in a way that is very different from other art forms. They can change people’s minds and feelings. That appeals to me. So, my ambition was to write a catchy song about breaking up with a bad lover (aka Gasoline).
ACT NOW – Mobile Film Festival (MMF)
Gasoline Breakup is one of 50 films competing for awards on all social media and particularly on YouTube. The online Mobile Film Festival is running from November 14 to November 30. On November 19, the top ten films will be chosen based on the number of views on social media platforms. So you need to ACT NOW to show your support for Gasoline Breakup.
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YouTube: https://www.youtube.
com/watch?v=Fxzh2hHjIwY& feature=youtu.be - Facebook: https://www.
facebook.com/117846508797/ posts/10157587897873798/ - Twitter: https://twitter.com/
MobileFilmFest/status/ 1194279936720195584?s=20 - Instagram: https://www.
instagram.com/tv/B4xJmXZI5vv/? utm_source=ig_web_copy_link - LinkedIn: https://www.
linkedin.com/feed/update/urn: li:activity: 6600391813649973249/
The MFF received over 800 movies from 91 countries. Then they selected 50 films from 24 countries, covering 10 main themes such as waste, recycling, global warming, water scarcity, deforestation, youth activism, climate anticipation, small gestures, overpopulation, and transportation.
The winning films will later be presented online, at screenings in cultural centres, in festivals, in cinemas, as well as by their 90 NGO partners on social media.
Gasoline Breakup was written by Franke James, Billiam James and Missy D. We produced the song with four Vancouver-based hip-hop artists Missy D, Francis Arevalo, Sejal Lal, and Lindal. Bill McKibben, founder of 350.org and former Michigan governor, Jennifer Granholm stepped in to do cameos.
CREDITS:
Created by: Sound Activism
Lyrics: Franke James and Billiam James
Music: Franke James, Billiam James and Missy D
Featuring: Missy D, Francis Arevalo, Sejal Lal & Lindal
Saxophone: Lamar Alviar
Cameos: Bill McKibben, Jennifer Granholm
Music Production: The Beat Cave, David Tallarico
Executive Producer: Coltura.org
Produced by The James Gang Iconoclasts, Inc
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This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.