Submitted by Margaret Konopacki Founder of Birdsong Music Foundation
Check out the four new single releases Available on All Digital Platforms Now with the Birdsong New Music Foundation.
The four releases are:
Arif Jinha – I Am
Producer: Greg Kavanagh
Terry Witzu – Irregardless
Producer: Ted Adler
Nicole McCafferty and Armand Antony (Broadtree) – So Right It’s Wrong
Producer: Bryant Didier
Nick Jones vocals; Rachel Scully – Hope-Holding On
Producer: Bryant Didier
Available globally on all digital platforms today, Birdsong Music Foundation has announced four new releases. The first is I Am, from artist Arif Jinha from Ottawa, produced in Toronto by platinum award-winning producer Greg Kavanagh (who has now produced three Birdsong artists including Robert Priest and D. M Lafortune, both from Toronto). Three of our producers, who work so closely with our artists, and the composers, tell us why they feel this work is so very important.
Greg Kavanagh comments: “An organization like Birdsong Foundation is important in our society because they give an opportunity to musicians that otherwise may not be able to put together a finished song. That is why I offer my time. The music business is a rough place to live and create. The gate keepers have expectations, and I feel it is important to just do ‘you’ as an artist and the rest follows.
“Mental illness is around us everywhere and with that added weight and insecurity, it makes it even more of a struggle to chase a dream. Birdsong can make a dream come true. I encourage other creative people who struggle to contact Birdsong Foundation, because they offer opportunities in a nurturing environment to get in the door with a start. And I encourage musicians to put yourself out there with no agenda! Working with Arif Jinha was wonderful and his song I Am – launches today, May 8, on his birthday – Happy Birthday, Arif!”
From Arif Jinha: “This single, I Am (I create myself to be) was produced by Greg in 2025 for the Birdsong Foundation based on earlier work from Andrew Brittain at Mudshark Audio. This is the first release of this song. I wrote the song like a journey through the oldest question, what am I, really? The ‘I’ in the song is not just the singer. It’s the transpersonal I, the awareness that precedes and underlies all particular forms of life. I enjoy composing from my soul in its connection to the mysterious greater soul, I feel that songs exist beyond me and I am here to discover them rather than write them. The experiences may be prompted by the personal, but the connection to the actual song is transpersonal and relatable. The music is there waiting for me to uncover it, and so the composition process is one of me getting out of the way, so it can come through. So, it’s a lot of exploration, and the genre influences arise as appropriate to the song.
“In the song I Am as a particle of light in a space called the universe, the I finds its most honest scale — infinitesimal, and completely at home there. Like the child Krishna who contains the cosmos in his mouth yet remains a laughing, butter-stealing child, the infinite wears the smallest form not as diminishment but as pure delight. ‘I’m alright’ is the most precise theological statement in the song. Nothing missing. Nothing to fix.”
Ottawa music producer Ted Adler of Sound Decisions completed songwriter Terry Witzu’s second song produced by the charity, entitled Irregardless.
Says Adler: “The music business can be challenging for all musicians, who lay bare their souls through lyrics and music. There is anxiety about making cold calls, promoting themselves on social media and the loss of privacy that results. Those are problems for anyone, but it is certainly a lot more common with people with mental illness or substance use disorder. I see a lot of musicians who stall out. They write the songs, but they don’t know what the next step is. I saw this as an opportunity to say to people, ‘Okay, where are you at? What are your goals? How can we accomplish that?’”
Adds Witzu: “The song Irregardless is tricky. I knew it wasn’t a real word, but I had used it for years! I think I was just being silly. My hope is this song makes you wanna turn up the volume. At its heart that’s what Rock n’ Roll has always been about and what it will always be about. Until it’s the insects’ turn. I wonder what kind of music they’ll make.
“Mostly, I would very much like to express my Tsunami of appreciation to Birdsong Foundation for all they’ve done for me!”
Our third song is called So Right It’s Wrong, written and performed by Nicole McCafferty and Armand Antony who call themselves Broadtree. Both artists talk about their mental health and educate others through music about their lives.
From Nicole and Armand: “We are huge advocates for taking the stigma out of the diagnosis of mental illness and an organization that puts that as their main focus, with the emphasis being on the artists living with these challenges, it felt like a perfect fit. I think the experience of songwriting is unique for each individual writing, including the baggage. We can almost let go of those challenges once it goes out to the world. The experience is still yours, but the baggage feels a little lighter once it’s released. In one word, the most meaningful thing about getting to share your music is the healing you feel.
“Our song produced by the Birdsong New Music Foundation, is titled So Right It’s Wrong. The initial inspiration came from our experience living and healing from mental illness. We are in recovery on a daily basis and it’s been a complex journey. When you spend decades in the turmoil of mental illness- the cycles, the episodes- you begin to adapt. It becomes your normal.
“We’ve learned to accept, and often manage, the darker periods including depression and anger. But as things improve, a different challenge emerges: the silence can feel almost too loud. When you’ve lived a certain way for so long, learning to exist outside of that – learning how to think and live differently – can feel surreal, even wrong. That’s where So Right It’s Wrong comes from. The explanation lives in the lyrics. We are a team of songwriters and performers who approach creating music like scriptwriting. Our work is about the story –- our story.
“When it comes to writing songs, we take our personal experiences and approach it the way we would characters we’d play on stage in plays or musicals. We like to build a world and get to know the characters we create before giving them our experiences to craft a story. We like thinking of our songs as 3–4-minute musicals.
“What we have learned about music during this journey is its healing power, both as listeners and as creators. Music is one of the biggest influences on our mental health. It allows us to take the problems and challenges we’re facing and release them, both literally in a song and in a very cathartic way. When you write the lyrics or a script about your ’story’ including the ups/downs to a character, you sort of let go of it when you tell the story to the world.”
Producer of So Right It’s Wrong”, and “Hope-Holding On”, Bryant Didier, comments: “Music has been known and proven scientifically to provide positive benefits without side effects, and the benefits are varied and numerous. I have now produced 12 Birdsong artists, and it is a gift to work with such incredible talent. I have gained profound knowledge and wisdom from my years of working with these artists.
“Their struggles, traumas and deep conversations we have had, have touched me deeply and helped me understand humanity in ways that have made me a better person. I have had to learn to communicate in a way that maximizes creative output and is sensitive to the uniqueness of each artist. As a result, my abilities to connect with people from all walks of life have increased in ways that I could never have imagined. I have great respect for all of the Birdsong artists – I think they are courageous. Working with Nicole and Armand from Broadtree was fun, exceptional and very rewarding.
“I also believe that the Birdsong Foundation plays a crucial role in the healing of our present society. There has been a rise in awareness about mental illness since Covid as well as an unfortunate epidemic of loneliness and psychological disorders in our society. There is a crisis around the world, including in Canada, and our governments don’t yet provide solutions. Most people can’t afford therapy, and artists and musicians are particularly susceptible because they are generally more sensitive than the general public. I have come to know many musicians who struggle with mental illness and substance use disorders and they tend to express with a depth beyond the norm.
Mae Martin and Birdsong Founder Margaret Konopacki
“Birdsong Foundation’s power is in capturing this in the music and live shows and by sharing it with the public. This can often lead to real healing for the artist, as well as with the listener (the audience) who also gains a fuller understanding and empathy towards others who struggle, in their minds and hearts. Birdsong Foundation plays its small but mighty role in creating hope through amazing music created by musicians who struggle with mental health. We the producers of this music are forever changed through the process.”
Our fourth song for release was penned in Yellowknife NWT and is called Hope-Holding On written by Birdsong songwriter Nick Jones and also produced by Didier.
From Nick Jones: “I’m in the second half of my life and it gives me some comfort that I am getting old. I was diagnosed with severe depression and anxiety some 20 years ago and I took up writing short verse or poems which helped me. I started a website to encourage others to try and see if it helped them too. I have always had songs in my head, there were things which stopped progressing, I don’t play an instrument, and you would not want to hear me sing
“But I started writing lyrics and pairing them with AI music. You would not believe what a positive impact music has had on my mental health. A line in one of my songs reads,” write anything, nothing is wrong.” Hope-hanging on, the title of this song was written out of personal experiences, and it reflects the importance of hope and not being afraid to ask for help. The cover image is of the lighthouse of hope being lashed by life’s waves. Suggesting that if you just hang on, we know there will be a calm soon. Never give up hope – that is also the message I got from Birdsong Foundation!”
I Am by Arif Jinha
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oij75equQSQ&list=RDoij75equQSQ&start_radio=1
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/track/6TuTfZkFNzsCUlLVGp2bvg
I am, I am, I am, That I create myself to be I am free I walked in the Garden Disappeared into the wind
I blow upon the breezes
And I fall down to the Earth
I’m a little seed, gonna grow up to be thousand year old trees
In the autumn I leave
Die and born again
I’m just a little particle of light
In a space called the universe
And I’m alright
I walked beside the ocean
My footsteps in the sand I dive into the ocean
And my footprints disappear
I’m a great big wave
I flow into the streams
Little birdie gonna gulp me, gonna take me up on high
See through her eyes the heavens, in the sky
I’m an eagle, or maybe a phoenix
I could fly straight into the heart of the light
And burn up there
But I’m still alright
Like shining stars, green forests, wide open fields I am free
Irregardless by Terry Witzu
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VezpwWU6FY8&list=RDVezpwWU6FY8&start_radio=1
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/track/2iQYurNyRoyeZpzOBPTrSL
Some of me, mostly you
Cleared my head and slept instead on what’s in store for me.
And slipped into a dream
I’d seen what could’ve been, what should have been (mmm-hmmm)
Will we ever run again?
Cause you and me are more than just Astrology,
but second chances simply aren’t your policy.
Semi-sad, semi-true
As the world was moving past me so where you
When I lost you in the crowd,
I was losing my self too (mm-hmm)
Semi-bland, semi-free
It’s not the life I wanted, but it suited me.
And if I could change now, then it would truly be for you and me (mm-hmmm)
As life goes on. Sometimes I feel like
I have lost my place as we retrace.
And it hurt so much to know that I’ve always been so easily replaceable (Na-nah-naah)
Are you glad that we’re through?
Are you happy everything within me misses you?
Still slipping into dreams, but I have nightmares too (mmm-hmmm)
Will we ever run again?
Cause’ you and me are more than just Astrology, but second chances simply aren’t your policy
And it hurts so much to know that I’ve always been so easily replaceable (Na-nah-na-naah)
So Right It’s Wrong by Nicole McCafferty and Armand Antony (Broadtree)
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-kmWqFWtd4U&list=RD-kmWqFWtd4U&start_radio=1&start_radio=1
Spotify https://open.spotify.com/track/3lQJgzBaEJ2mfPvghFon4O
Raised up in a warzone where I learned to fight
Never knowing if I’d make it to next light
Went through all the bottles, all the docs and meds
A battle’s hard won when it’s in your head
Back to a place I don’t recognize
The plates all match, and the dust complies
Pristine counters, a neat, calm home
How to trust what you’ve never known
I was comfortable in chaos
And now it’s gone
Now everything feels
So right it’s wrong
Cleaned up the mess I used to lean on
Now everything feels
So right it’s wrong
TV Man says “You’re in denial
War’s been over for a long, long while”
Took a drive down that broken road
But they paved it over, and changed the zip code
Painted the houses, secured the gates
Don’t change the fact it don’t feel safe
I was comfortable in chaos
And now it’s gone
Now everything feels
So right it’s wrong
Cleaned up the mess I used to lean on
Now everything feels
So right it’s wrong
I can handle the worst
Can I handle the best
What do I do now?
You were one of the few
Now you’re one of the rest
What do I do now?
I’m still waiting for the next attack
Spent too long racing to protect the cracks
But I built something, and I think I’m proud
Found some peace in silence that’s so loud
I was comfortable in chaos
And now it’s gone
Now everything feels
So right it’s wrong
Cleaned up the mess I used to lean on
Now everything feels
So right it’s wrong
Find something new that I can lean on
Won’t always feel so right it’s wrong
Won’t always feel so right it’s wrong
Hope-Holding On by Nick Jones Vocals Rachel Scully
Due for Release in June 2026
Without it we are lost
It takes us up life’s highway
This happens every day
I’m sitting in the dark again
Waiting for hope’s return
In the distance hope’s lights I see
Lights that will set me free
Waiting here for hope’s return
We hear a distant sound
As long as birdsong is around
We will listen until hope’s return
I’m sitting in the dark again
Waiting for hope’s return
In the distance hope’s lights I see
Lights that will set me free
Left alone in the dark
My thoughts look back
Bad thoughts are the mix
All thoughts I tried to fix
I’m sitting in the dark again
Waiting for hope’s return
In the distance hope’s lights, I see
Lights that will set me free
I know past deeds I cannot fix
In spite of this I work on this
Many at a time, but still no peace
Always looking for some release
I’m sitting in the dark again
Waiting for hope’s return
In the distance hope’s lights I see
Lights that will set me free
Hope is never really lost
We know hopes will return
When at last hope lands
Hold on with both your hands
I’m sitting in the dark again
Waiting for hope’s return
In the distance hope’s lights, I see
Lights that will set me free
Hope’s light has returned at last
I bathe in hope’s warm light
This time hope will not leave me
I’m holding on too tight
I’m holding on too tight
This time hope will not leave me
I’m holding on too tight
Too tight
Currently in pre-production at Kensington Sound in Toronto for new Birdsong New Music Foundation – new story coming soon.
(L-R) Vezi Tayeb, Producer and Owner of Kensington Sound, Steve Raimon, Producer, Margaret Konopacki Founder Birdsong Foundation, Bryant Didier, Producer
Birdsong New Music Foundation