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Taken from Instagram (June 04, 2016)
Michael Franti auf Instagram: Great honor of meeting The Greatest
by Michael Franti
Prince and Muhammad Ali. Photo posted by Michael Franti |
I had the great honor of meeting The Greatest when I was invited to play at the opening of the #MuhammadAli Center in Louisville Kentucky. The most telling thing of the whole experience was that Muhammad insisted that the center built in his name was not merely a museum of his boxing prowess, in fact only one fifth of the experience there is dedicated to boxing, and the other sections of it are dedicated to his youth, to spirituality, education, activism and to spreading his message of humanity, that people of all nations and creeds can live together. I performed the song East To The West for him and many distinguished guests including, President Clinton, Bob Costas, Richie Havens, Kris Kristoferson and many other celebs and fighters. One of the greatest moments in my career was watching a smile come to Ali's eyes through his Parkinson's disease as I sang the words, "Life is too short to make just one decision, Music's too large for just one station, love is too big for just one nation and God is too big for just one religion!"
Ali risked everything for peace when he refused to fight in the Vietnam war, he came back after his years of court battles and after losing his boxing license because of it, to inspire billions, not millions, but billions of people to stick to their belief in the power of people and to never give up the fight! After the show that night I had the great honor of shaking his hand and hugging the man hundreds of thousands of people had hugged before. I will never forget his strength and kindness.
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