It's Columbus Day in the US, the day that marks Christopher Columbus's arrival in the country back in 1492, however Alaskan band Portugal. The Man have long been critical of the day's celebration of the genocide of America's Indigenous populations - instead, they've chosen to celebrate Indigenous Peoples' Day with the release of a new song called Who's Gonna Stop Me.
Teaming up with "Weird Al" Yankovic for his very first non-comedic release (the time had to come and what better than this occasion?) and the song arrives with a truly gorgeous video, featuring Indigenous leaders and artists from all over the world, and it's sure to bring shivers down your arm.
When writing the song, the band were thinking about what being free in your youth feels like - so of course they thought about the silliness of "Weird Al" and how that marked growing up in the 90s/2000s. It only made sense to see if the comedic singer would join them on the song.
"Weird Al" was thrilled to join them too, adding, "I’ve jammed with them at Bonnaroo, I’ve produced remixes for two of their songs, and now I’m doing vocals on Who’s Gonna Stop Me. Portugal. The Man are not only my friends, but they’re one of my favourite bands in the world, and I’m thrilled to be featured on their new single.”
Launching the PTM Foundation earlier this year, an organisation focused on human rights, community health and the environment, with an emphasis on causes directly impacting Indigenous Peoples, it's not the first time PTM have stood up for the rights of the world's Indigenous populations.
In fact, it was the controversial Stolen Generation discussion on the Channel Seven's Sunrise breakfast program in 2017 that inspired the band to start the charity in the first place. The band were due to play on Sunrise that week, but after seeing the segment, they promptly cancelled their appearance and instead added a Welcome To Country to their Australian gig by Aboriginal Elder, Uncle Allen Madden. Respecting the traditional stewards of each land they perform on is something they continue to do to this day at every show in every country.
