Merle Haggard's last recorded song and farewell to Bakersfield might just restore the river he loved. Haggard, the legendary singer/songwriter that helped define the Bakersfield Sound, recorded "Kern River Blues" in 2016, where he lamented that the Kern River's water had been stolen and the river had been dried up. Now "Kern River Blues" has become the rallying cry of Bakersfield's environmental justice movement for restoring flowing water to the river that Merle loved. On June 28th, a newly released version of Merle's powerful lyrics are being sung by artists of all generations, genres, and musical backgrounds in hopes of unleashing a deluge of additional public support for the Kern. The song and video release includes jazz vocalist Gregory Porter (2 Grammy awards), hip hop artist Zacari, and 7 other featured artists who are nationally recognized musicians hailing from Bakersfield. These musicians are giving voice to the people of Bakersfield who want lasting protections on their river to ensure agricultural interests can no longer dry up the entirety of the river's flows. These musicians are giving voice to a community who wants to see agricultural water diversions balanced with the needs of the ecosystems dependent on the river and half a million people living near the river.

​

The collaboration video and press materials are below. The video is available for viewing by media contacts who have agreed to the media embargo terms. The embargo will lift at 12:00pm Pacific Time on 6/28, at which time the song will be available on all major streaming services. For media contacts wanting to have access to a downloadable audio file to play for your coverage of the story, please email contact@bringbackthekern.org to receive access. 

​

Below is a video version of the song, available only to journalists to tell the story about the project and the audio release. Note that this video is not to be shared with the public. The song and video were originally produced in 2022 with the anticipation that Merle's widow, Theresa Haggard, would approve the project, given that she had expressed support for Bring Back the Kern's work to restore the river in December 2021 and that she had offered to help. After nearly 2 years of back and forth with the Haggard Estate where Merle's widow continued to express interest in supporting the Kern River, no deal was reached for a synchronization license and even the audio is being released under a compulsory license, even after being offered money and recognition for contributing to the release. More details on this part of the backstory can be shared by requesting them from contact@bringbackthekern.org.