Rosie Nimmo records song to help Syrian refugees

Rosie Nimmo is giving part of the money from sales of her new album to Syrian refugees. Picture: Greg Macvean

After staring at the clouds one day while she was on holiday, comparing the lives of people living in different countries, Rosie Nimmo wrote the song Clouds Colliding as part of her third album, Scrapbook.

The college lecturer, from Portobello, said the aim of the song was to help people understand the tough times that Syrian refugees are facing, as well as raising money for city-based emergency response charity Mercy Corps.

Rosie said: “Before I wrote the song, I’d already been thinking about doing something to help refugees, as I’ve been interested in them for a while.

“I read a book called The Other Hand and I was really moved by it – some of the stories in that book about refugees were so harrowing I can’t get them out of my head.

“This crisis isn’t going to go away, and as I lay looking at the clouds while I was on holiday in France, it just made me think about the havoc the clouds cause when they collide together – and how that can be applied to the Syrian refugee crisis.

“I think it’s important to try and get people to realise what is actually going on.”

All funds raised from Rosie’s song will go directly to Mercy Corps, a global organisation with its European headquarters in Edinburgh.

At the moment, the charity is addressing the urgent needs of nearly four million people both inside Syria and in neighbouring countries.

Mercy Corps has the second-largest operation inside Syria, next to the UN, and is reaching an estimated 500,000 people every month.

Jennifer Adams, the fundraising manager for the charity, said that across the region it was currently delivering food, clean water, improving shelters and providing families with clothes.

It is also helping children cope with trauma and leading constructive activities to nurture their healthy development.

She said: “We are delighted that Rosie is donating the funds from her latest single to support our work with refugee families. Mercy Corps is currently addressing the urgent needs of nearly four million people inside Syria; in neighbouring countries and across Europe.

“Although the scale of this humanitarian crisis is huge, Rosie has shown that people do not need to feel like they can’t help.

“Everyone can act to support people coping with upheaval and conflict by doing one thing in our everyday lives to raise much-needed funds.”

Clouds Colliding can be purchased from iTunes or from www.rosie nimmo.com.

[email protected]