Over the weekend, the non-for-profit organisation Pathway to Paris hosted a digital music festival in celebration of the 50th anniversary of Earth Day.
The stream featured the likes of R.E.M.‘s Michael Stipe, Patti Smith, Cat Power, Johnny Depp, Red Hot Chili Peppers‘ Flea, and Ben Harper.
During the recent Pathway to Paris: Earth Day 50 festival, Patti Smith performed a song she had written for Johnny Depp’s birthday.
Whilst the concert featured a number of highlights including Johnny Depp performing John Lennon‘s Working Class Hero and Cat Power performing The Rolling Stones‘ (I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction, as well as Bob Dylan‘s Kingsport Town, perhaps one of the best moments was when Patti Smith performed a song she had written for Depp’s birthday.
The song was actually penned way back in 2009, and whilst Depp’s birthday isn’t until June (June 9 to be exact), Smith took the opportunity to perform it whilst they were both on the same live stream. The track is called Nine.
“I wrote this for Johnny’s birthday. Johnny was born on June 9th. It was a full moon, on a Sunday. I know this because it was verified by his mother. Johnny has been our great friend and protector and this is for him,” she described before performing the song, with Depp watching on.
Elsewhere, Smith read some poems and performed with her daughter Jesse Paris Smith, who founded Pathway to Paris back in 2014 in order to generate momentum for the 2016 Paris Climate Agreement.
Check out Smith performing Nine below.
Patti Smith wrote a song for Johnny Depp’s upcoming birthday and this is all that matters because he deserves all the love and support 🕯🖤🙌🏼 pic.twitter.com/duX0u9PJAM
— Sienna (@winonasrider) April 26, 2020
Patti Smith singing NINE, a song she wrote around 2009 for Johnny’s birthday. It was released in her studio album Banga.
Here’s the video from tonight’s @pathway2paris live event. #EARTHDAY50 #JohnnyDepp
(1/2) pic.twitter.com/yDgFZNTh1h
— IFOD (@ifod_net) April 26, 2020
Next Up: A guide to Patti Smith’s 5 most important records
