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Until the sun comes up

 

We’ve always been the coolest solar charity with an orange and black logo based in South East London, but now, SolarAid just got even cooler! You didn’t think it was possible did you? Be honest, you didn’t did you. Ok, so even if you did, you’ll be surprised by how cool this is.

Canadian crooner Raghav has teamed up with Nelly (the rapper from St Louis) and Abhishek Bachchan (the Bollywood superstar) for his awesome new jam Until the Sun Comes Up. Raghav got in touch with us as he wanted to bring attention to the 1.3 billion people currently living without electricity in the world.

Raghav said “I just can’t believe that in 2015 so many people still live without a reliable source of electricity. While the western world have been connected to the grid for nearly a hundred years, and walk around with powerful computers in their pockets, millions in Africa and around the world have to use a tin can and some kerosene to light their homes at night. This is a tragic injustice and one I wanted to bring attention to in my video”.

The video was shot in Shubugubwen Secondary School in the Mkuranga, a town in the Pwani region of Mkuranga. Raghav took 300 solar lights with him to shoot the video, which he then gave to the kids to help them study for school.

Raghav said “Those little little lights are pretty cool and so much better than kerosene lamps. The light is much brighter, they don’t give off toxic smoke and they last all night. The kids had a great time shooting the video and i’m hoping they can now go on and get a good education thanks to the solar lights”.

The video was shot back in September, just as solar light sales in Tanzania began to rocket. Awareness and availability of solar lights are at an all time high and we’re hoping that Raghav’s generous donation and amazing video will help even more people make the switch to solar.

Susie Wheeldon of SolarAid said “We love the track here at SolarAid and can’t get enough of the video. It’s so uplifting and beautifully shot. It’s been such a pleasure working with Raghav, he’s super talented and genuinely passionate about off-grid energy access. We’re looking forward to working with him again in the future”.

Check out the video here and be sure to share to bring more attention to the solar revolution!