RISAN BRANDS

Risan Media’s short film, Northward, is now being distributed throughout Europe on the AbsintheTV channel on Samsung TV Plus and is available in Germany, Austria, Switzerland and the UK. 

Northward is a short documentary that chronicles the story of Colorado-based band, Salem, that performs Todd Anders Johnson’s socially-conscious compositions blending alternative rock, world, hip-hop, jazz and neo-soul. The band is composed of snowboarders and skiers and Salem tours throughout North America with Risan Project multi-media events featuring concerts alongside action sports films and content from the environmental, outdoor and cannabis industries.   

AbsintheTV is a 24 hour linear channel with video on demand options that launched February 12 on Samsung TV Plus. It’s here to legitimately represent the past, present and future of five categories that appeal most to people emerged in boardsports culture: Art/Music/Surf/Skate/Snow. A free channel on TV Plus, AbsintheTV is available on all Samsung smart TVs in Germany, Switzerland, Austria and the UK. As Samsung expands their TV Plus program, AbsintheTV will be included in France in September and Italy and Spain shortly thereafter, with North America coming in the not too distant future. For now, look for AbsintheTV on Samsung TV Plus in Germany, Austria and Switzerland on Channel 4076 and in the UK on Channel 4071.  

Being a singer-songwriter is not easy. Like many creative pursuits, songwriting requires a level of craftiness and ingenuity that can be hard to capture.

Colorado-based musician Todd Anders Johnson likes to find his creativity in nature. An avid snowboarder and mountain athlete, Johnson captures this creative process in his new short film titled, “Northward”.

The artistry of Todd Anders Johnson lies at the intersection of jamming and shredding.

The Risan Project is traveling between Alaska and Colorado next month, hosting multi-media events that include live music, snowboard film showings, and on-site activations from cannabis industry partners.

Salem will bring Todd Anders Johnson's socially conscious hip-hop, jazz and neo-soul compositions to Main Street Grill in the Riverwalk at Edwards on Friday, March 10. The band travels with Risan Project tours, which include concerts, ski and snowboard film premiers and avalanche awareness videos with partners in the outdoor and cannabis industries. Salem will perform with film premiers of Absinthe Films' latest snowboard film, afterForever with ski and snowboard videos from Inspired Media and Luca Rolli, cannabis animation from Nug Nation and Mary Jane's Medicinals, educational videos from the Marijuana Policy Project and AIARE. Local partners for this show are Roots RX and Tumbleweed. 

Next Thursday, the Risan Project is back in Anchorage on their annual tour of Alaska, bringing with them Colorado- based band Salem. The Risan Project's mission is to raise awareness of climate change through entertainment and action-based engagement, with their Alaskan tour focusing on snow sports like skiing and snowboarding. Combining film, music and activism, Risan's Alaska Tour offers audiences the chance to learn more about how to protect and enjoy nature while jamming to some incredible music.

Just because the weather says it’s spring doesn’t mean ski movies should be taken off your Netflix queue. The Down East is making sure the ski season stays alive and strong next Wednesday with the showing of the 2011 ski film “Being There” and slush-skiing rock of the band Salem from Breckenridge, Colo.

Boulder band Salem partners with Voile for winter tour, plays show at Gold Pan in Breck. The Salem shows combine songwriter Johnson's original blend of hip-hop, jazz and neo-soul with the Voile backcountry ski culture, promoting good vibes, great powder and Voile skis, split-boards, bindings and avalanche safety equipment.

When Boulder based funk-groove band Salem’s Todd Anders Johnson saw the Protect Our Winters/TGR movie Generations, which shows the impact of climate change on snow culture, he knew he had to promote the film through concerts. The result? The Risan Project, combing live music, ski and snowboard film premiers, and presentations from environmental organizations like Protect Our Winters and SunCore Solar.

Todd Anders Johnson was a panelist and performed his original music with Bono's One Campaign at the University of Pennsylvania Campus Challenge.

Salem’s Harvest, composed by Todd Anders Johnson, backing a Warren Miller ski edit with Corona. 

ASPEN – Most everything about Todd Anders Johnson lines up quite neatly, as a left-leaning, environmentalist, socially engaged type. Johnson has done work with Bono’s One Campaign, an organization dedicated to fighting poverty, and has been affiliated with the Climate Project Canada. Not content to simply join other movements, in 2009, Johnson formed his own organization, the Risan Project, that links music and sporting events with alternative energy and sustainability efforts. While living in Seattle, in 2004, Johnson started his band, Salem, taking the name from the Hebrew “shalom” and the Arabic “salaam” – both of which translate as “peace.”.

MD featured me in the On The Movedepartment a couple of years ago, so I thought I’d let you know what I’ve been up to with my group since then. I’ve been living in Boulder, Colorado and have now tied together my passions for drums, music, touring, social activism—and snowboarding!

"I believe that through the long tradition of resistance music, we can celebrate while contesting the injustice that we identify before us as a global community." - Todd Anders Johnson

Video of Todd Anders Johnson, Risan Media, Denver, CO: “Celebrating diversity in climate science and glacier mountain environments” presentation at the United Nations International Mountain Day and Mountain Partnership Celebration at Utah Valley University.