Grammy Award winning, singer and songwriter Michael W. Smith is releasing his moving new instrumental single “Cry for hope” today in response to the current devastation in Ukraine.
“After watching the news and the devastation in Ukraine, like most of the world I was in tears. Over the next few days this melody just kept coming back to me and just spoke a message that no words could convey,” Smith says.
“Cry for Hope” was recorded with the Nashville recording orchestra and Smith on piano. His good friend David Hamilton led the orchestration and co-produced the song with Smith.
A portion of the proceeds of “Cry for Hope” will be distributed to Ukraine aid.
According to the Christian Post:
“I just can't comprehend how somebody can just go in and just start killing people,” the 64-year-old Grammy Award-winning artist told The Christian Post.
“It just blows my mind … you see the pictures, you know what's going on, and it just moves me. And a lot of times, I don't know what to say, I end up crying.”
So the artist did what he does best: He put his fingers on a piano and penned a song to provide hope in the midst of crisis. The result was “Cry For Hope,” a new instrumental single recorded with the Nashville Recording Orchestra.
“It’s really different than anything I think I've ever written and inspired by John Williams, probably like 'Schindler's List' a little bit,” he said. “I don't think I've ever written a melody that haunting and it has a little hope in it.”