Peter Gabriel
Peter Gabriel has earned a worldwide reputation for his innovative work as a musician, writer and video maker. When at school, he co-founded the band Genesis, which he left in 1975. His albums, live performances and videos since then have won him a succession of awards. In 1980, he collected together a group of people to found WOMAD (World of Music, Arts & Dance). In a series of international festivals, each year WOMAD brings together traditional and modern music, arts and dance from every corner of the globe. Peter is currently an advisor on the board of WOMAD. Peter has been involved in a broad spectrum of human rights and environmental issues. His song, 'Biko', was the first pop song which talked about the effects of apartheid, and in 1988 and 1990 he was involved in the Nelson Mandela concerts at Wembley. In 1988 he also worked with Amnesty International to set up the "Human Rights Now" tour, visiting many countries with Sting, Bruce Springsteen, Tracy Chapman and Youssou N'Dour. Following this, he initiated the "Witness" programme, which was launched in 1992 in conjunction with the Reebok Foundation in the USA. The organisation aims to arm human rights activists from around the world with hand-held video cameras and other tools of mass communication. In 1989, he visited the USSR to help launch Greenpeace and also contributed to the 'One World, One Voice' album - a collaborative project which featured artists from all over the world.