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Taken from Richmond Times (August 20, 2009)
Michael Franti celebrating his first hit after a 23-year career
by MELISSA RUGGIERI TIMES-DISPATCH STAFF WRITER
 One day last month, Michael Franti received a call from his record label that his summertime jam, "Say Hey (I Love You)" -- his first hit in a 23-year career -- was storming radio.
The next day, Franti, 43, was lying in an operating room as doctors worked swiftly to repair his ruptured appendix.
Perhaps the universe was trying to tell him something.
"I'm grateful to be alive," Franti said a couple of weeks ago from his home in San Francisco, three days after being released from the hospital. "But I'm very philosophical about [the timing]. I'm very humbled by people's response to my music -- we have 23 years of 'overnight success.' But to have this [medical condition] happen, you're really reminded that things are so fleeting in life."
Though Franti's name is familiar to fans of reggae, the Oakland, Calif., native has experimented with many genres of music: punk in 1986 with his first band, The Beatnigs; hip-hop and funk in the early'90s with The Disposable Heroes of Hiphoprisy; and, since 1994, Spearhead, whose music maintains Franti's strong political and social views over rock, reggae and dance-hall beats.
On his current album, "All Rebel Rockers," released last fall, Franti teamed with renowned reggae producers Sly and Robbie, whom he credits for turning "Say Hey," which began as a folk ditty, into a palm-slapping party song.
" 'Say Hey' is a lot like 'She'll Be Coming'Round the Mountain' -- you could easily do a bluegrass version," Franti said. "But [Sly and Robbie] put this funky dance-hall beat under it. When I walked into the studio, it was just me and the guitar. I did not hear the song having that beat at all. But when they started playing it, I was like, 'Hey, this is pretty cool.' They always say to me, 'Let's take the nastiest bass line and drums and put the prettiest melody over it.'"
The song, which is still celebrating increased spins at hot adult contemporary stations, received one of its earliest public outings in April, when late-night TV host Craig Ferguson used it in one of his show-opening sing-along bits with puppets (search YouTube for "Craig Ferguson and Say Hey").
"I laughed so hard when I saw it," Franti said. "We had been on the show a few times, and we really have a fun time off the set."
Soon, "Say Hey" was ubiquitous -- a scene in the season opener of "Weeds," a "horrible cover version," said Franti, on "Dancing With the Stars" and status on plenty of grocery-store music systems.
Since the hit marks the first exposure to Franti's music for many listeners, he'll soon head to Jamaica to work on a retrospective record with producer Don Was as a means of introducing his songs to a new audience.
"We're taking our best and our favorites from the past 20 years and re-recording them," Franti said, adding that he's also recording a new album there with Sly and Robbie, tentatively called "The Sound of Sunshine."
The singer-composer also realizes that now, many people might come to his concerts for the curiosity factor, without realizing the extent of his pre-"Say Hey" career -- and he's fine with that.
"We are a band that has prided ourselves on making our live show the most unique, fun and energetic. Everybody in the whole family, from your 3-year-old kid to your grandma, will have a good time," Franti said. "So if people come to the show based on that, I don't think they'll be disappointed. It's just a blessing to be exposed to so many new people."
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