It is often said that music is a universal language, connecting people from different corners of the earth despite language and cultural barriers. Two members of Canadian post-grunge and alternative rock band Three Days Grace recently experienced this phenomenon firsthand on a trip to Kenya.
The excursion took place in September, after two band members were invited by friends to travel to Africa to “soak in some culture on the other side of the planet,” according to a September 7 Tweet.
Embarking on the African adventure were lead singer Matt Waist and drummer Neil Sanderson. Sanderson has been transparent about his battle with anxiety through a partnership with Team 55, a fundraising program that raises suicide awareness in conjunction with the Canadian Mental Health Association.
The expedition to Africa quickly became a moving and eye opening experience for the band mates. As they reflected on their travels in a concluding social media post, Waist and Sanderson shared “we had the honor of meeting so many beautiful and resilient people. We experienced some heavy challenges that people are currently facing, but are clearly determined to overcome. Hope and bravery was around every corner we looked. 3DG has always been about connecting people to overcome their struggles.”
During their time spent in the tribal villages in Kenya, they shared amazing moments through music. On arrival, the Luworo group from the Taveta tribe welcomed them with a traditional song and dance that are “100’s of years old.” Check out the beautiful display of culture in this 3DG Instagram video.
Evidenced by a subsequent video, they had the opportunity to “share some of [their] music back–” in this case a Bob Marley acoustic cover, “Everything’s Gonna Be Alright,” to a dancing and joyous crowd. In a later post on Facebook, they are shown playing an acoustic Three Days Grace tune to the “sweetest mosh-pit ever!”
Learn more about Matt and Neil’s trip by following Three Days Grace on Instagram.
Three Days Grace formed in 1997 and in March 2018 released Outsider, which features their latest single “Infra-Red.”
Rock On Purpose 