Carly Rae Jepsen, A Great Big World, and Futuristic to Perform at 19th Annual HRC National Dinner

WASHINGTON – Today, the Human Rights Campaign (HRC), the nation’s largest lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) civil rights organization, announced that multi-platinum selling Grammy nominated singer and songwriter Carly Rae Jepsen and multi-platinum selling Grammy award-winning act A Great Big World – joined by Hip-Hop artist Futuristic – will perform at the 19th annual HRC National Dinner on October 3, 2015, in Washington, DC.

“We are excited that Carly Rae Jepsen, A Great Big World, and Futuristic will be performing at the HRC National Dinner and help make the evening absolutely unforgettable,” said HRC President Chad Griffin. “Carly Rae Jepsen is not only one of the most successful artists in the world, she has been a committed and outspoken ally for the LGBT community. A Great Big World’s new groundbreaking single featuring Futuristic has been an inspiration to us all, and we are exceptionally fortunate to welcome them to our stage.”

Multi-platinum selling Grammy nominated singer and songwriter Carly Rae Jepsen released her critically acclaimed new album E·MO·TION on August 21st earning a host of positive reviews from such outlets as SPINPeopleNylonRolling StoneStereogumComplexPAPERNew York MagazineNPR and more while TIME deemsE·MO·TION, “the current frontrunner for pop album of the year.”  Jepsen recently premiered the video for her brand new single “Run Away With Me” – watch it HERE. The first single released from the album, “I Really Like You,” became a global Top 40 hit while the video is Vevo Certified with over 100 million views.  E·MO·TION is the follow-up to Jepsen’s U.S. debut album Kiss, which featured her blockbuster break-out hit “Call Me Maybe.” The single climbed to No. 1 on the iTunes Singles charts in over 47 countries and has sold over 18 million singles worldwide to date. It earned Jepsen 2012 GRAMMY nominations for Best Pop Solo Performance and Song of the Year. Kiss also spawned the follow-up hit “Good Time,” a duet with Owl City, which has been certified double-platinum. Jepsen spent much of 2014 starring in the Broadway production of Rodgers & Hammerstein’s Cinderella, earning rave reviews.

Jepsen has been an outspoken advocate for LGBT equality. In an interview with TIME in 2012, Carly said, “You know, acceptance has never even been a question to me. I’ve grown up knowing it’s just the way things should be. When we shot the “Call Me Maybe” video, we weren’t even thinking the ending was not normal. I have so many gay friends that I love. It’s a regular thing. And if my video is encouraging that mind frame with other children and other people — well, it’s about time, I guess!”  

Ian Axel and Chad King make up the Grammy Award-winning duo A Great Big World. They made music history with their 4x platinum #1 global hit “Say Something” (with Christina Aguilera), and are back with a brand new single “Hold Each Other” feat. Futuristic. “Hold Each Other,” a timely and socially conscious track, is the lead single from A Great Big World’s eagerly awaited second album, Won’t Stop Running, which is being released on Nov 13. With this track, Axel and King explain "We are hoping that we can inspire people (even just a little) to fearlessly speak their truth when it comes to who they are and who they love."

A Great Big World will be joined by Hip-Hop artist Futuristic for their HRC National Dinner performance. Futuristic’s album "The Rise" was released on May 12, 2015, and debuted at #2 on iTunes and #9 on Hip-Hop Billboard charts. As an independent artist, Futuristic takes pride in his creativity and versatility using his words to inspire his fans and let them know that anything is truly possible. He has been touring virtually non-stop over the last 2 years headlining, and moving forward he expects to be exactly what he named his lead single from his album.... "The Greatest".

The 19th annual HRC National Dinner, which is expected to draw over 3,000 guests, will be held at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center. More information is available at www.hrcnationaldinner.org.

All media who would like to attend must pre-register by Wednesday, September 30th. To request media credentials, please contact Stephen Peters at stephen.peters@hrc.org. Only members of the media who have been credentialed in advance for this event will be allowed entrance due to limited space. Further logistics and coverage details will be forthcoming to credentialed media.

The Human Rights Campaign is America’s largest civil rights organization working to achieve lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender equality. HRC envisions a world where LGBT people are embraced as full members of society at home, at work and in every community.

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