Singing UN ambassadors release peace-themed CD

Proceeds from the singing ambassadors' single will go towards supporting youth projects

A group of ambassadors to the United Nations has taken a break from the cut and thrust of high-level diplomacy to record a peace-themed single.

Recording under the band name UNRocks, the diplomats released their debut track - Strong UN, Better World - on Thursday. It features the musical talents of Denmark's ambassador on bass guitar and the representative of South Korea on drums, alongside ambassadors from Serbia, Tonga, and Thailand. The band's lead singer is the head of the UN's office in Belgrade, Simona Miculescu, who also co-wrote the lyrics.

The track is meant to "ignite people's hearts with the soft power of music", according to the non-profit Friendship Ambassadors Foundation, which produced the CD. It's being released to coincide with the 70th anniversary of the UN. Appropriately, the musical diplomats have also recorded a cover of Rockin' All Over the World.

"While violence only breeds more violence, we feel the world needs more initiatives aimed at solving conflicts peacefully," the group said in a statement, adding that more needs to be invested in "cultural diplomacy". An earlier incarnation of the group recorded an album of peace-related cover versions.

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