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Today, The World Games 2022 presents the official music video for its theme song, “Hope of Alabama.” Shot in the city of Birmingham, AL - host to the forthcoming World Games (July 7 - 17), the largest international athletic gathering in the U.S. this year - the video powerfully showcases the song’s message of unity in diversity, with special appearances by some of Alabama’s most iconic artists including: Alabama, The Blind Boys of Alabama, Bo Bice, Sara Evans, Taylor Hicks, Jamey Johnson, Pastor Mike Jr., Martha Reeves, Ruben Studdard, Yung Bleu and others. The star-studded video also features some of Birmingham’s most significant landmarks, including Vulcan (the largest cast iron statue in the world), the Martin Luther King Jr. statue in Kelly Ingram Park, and the Sixteenth Street Baptist Church, the site of the tragic bombing that killed the “Four Little Girls” in 1963.
Watch/Share the video for “Hope of Alabama” here
Written by Alabama’s Randy Owen, his daughter Allison Owen, and World Games Artistic Director Dr. Henry Panion III, and produced by Panion, “Hope Of Alabama” will be featured and performed during both the Opening and Closing Ceremonies of the World Games (July 7 and 17 respectively) at Birmingham’s Protective Stadium. Funk legend and Rock & Roll Hall of Famer Bootsy Collins will serve as Master of Ceremonies and kick off The World Games 2022 on July 7, at Protective Stadium, leading a theatrical and musical presentation titled Unlocking The Magic: Celebrating The Power of The One. The evening will be a colorful celebration of both the arts and sports, including an honorable commemoration of Birmingham’s industrial and civil-rights history. The Closing Ceremony features a parade of athletes representing more than 100 countries, honorable dignitaries, and performances by Yolanda Adams, Alabama, Sara Evans, Nelly, Sheila E., Tony! Toni! Tone!, a cast of dancers, field pageantry artists, and a 75-piece orchestra, conducted by Panion.
Global superstar and Tuskegee, AL-native Lionel Richie will headline The World Games 2022 Closing Ceremony on July 17, with his first in-state performance in more than twenty years. Titled One World-One People: Celebrating Legacy, Achievement & Unity, the star-studded night will honor The Games with incredible performances and the opportunity for athletes, fans and volunteers to bid farewell to Birmingham. Other artists confirmed to perform at the Closing Ceremony include Alabama; a special duet between Blind Boys of Alabama and Jamey Johnson; Alabama’s own American Idol’s Bo Bice, Taylor Hicks, and Ruben Studdard, on stage together for the first time; Motown legend Martha Reeves performing “Dancing in the Streets,” plus performances by The Voice’s mother/daughter trio Worth The Wait, gospel musician & 5x Stellar Award winner Pastor Mike Jr., and rising rap sensation Yung Bleu. The Closing Ceremony will cap with the traditional passing of The World Games flag to representatives from the 2025 host city: Chengdu, China, including a special artistic feature presented by the Chinese.
Learn more and purchase your tickets here.
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