Rock the Vote rocks the stars - like Foo Fighters - at DNC - Charlotte Observer

The announcement that the Foo Fighters would play The Fillmore as part of Rock the Vote’s Democratic National Convention festivities kicked off a mouse-clicking frenzy that led to tickets selling out in record time.

Heather Smith, president of Rock the Vote, which will also bring Motion City Soundtrack to UNC Charlotte’s campus Wednesday, says the 21-year-old organization has no trouble scoring A-list artists like Foo Fighters, Sheryl Crow and the Beastie Boys.

“Rock the Vote was founded 21 years ago by members of the recording industry – creative directors, artists and musicians. They think of us as their charity and as a platform to use their voice to reach people. We’ve been working with these artists for decades now,” she explained the day after the Foo Fighters’ announcement. “It’s fun to have moments like this where all the stars align to help us elevate our message.”

While concerts are a big attraction, Rock the Vote’s goal of registering 1.5 million new voters this year is a lofty one, considering staggering state-by-state statistics. While states like North Carolina and South Carolina make registering to vote as simple as signing up when you get a driver’s license, many states don’t offer that option or online or same-day registration.

“The system is really in many ways archaic, especially to an 18-year-old voter trying to navigate this process for the first time. You aren’t born knowing that 28 days before an election you have to fill out a paper and take it to the post office. There’s a real, fairly desperate need to upgrade our system to meet the 21st century. It is bureaucratic and paper-based and riddled with errors,” says Smith, a graduate of Duke University. Her experience working with communities on public health and environmental issues highlighted the need for changes in the registration process. “I would win a small victory and it would get overturned. I realized no matter what we did, nothing would ever get fixed if we weren’t voting and influencing the politicians that make these decisions.”

The climate has certainly changed since the 1992 election, when Rock the Vote, which focuses much of its efforts toward college students, registered 200,000 new voters using fax machines and 800 numbers.

“Madonna draped herself in the flag and talked about why voting mattered,” recalls Smith. “Now it’s mobile phones, Twitter and Facebook and electronic dance music DJs and rock n’ roll bands or hip-hop artists like Nas and Santigold.”

In 2008, RTV registered 2.25?million voters.

“That was massive – more than double their biggest year ever,” adds Smith, who says the organization continues to communicate with those voters, notifying them about upcoming elections and what forms of ID are required.

RTV is also connecting with future voters through education. “We run a high school program in the spring for seniors who will be first-time voters in the fall, which covers the history of voting and how to navigate the process,” she says.

While some may consider voting a milestone like getting a driver’s license at 16 or turning 21, the numbers suggest that’s not often the case.

“If we treated this rite of passage with the respect it deserves,” Smith says, “it could elevate the rate at which people are participating. ... It is something our government should be doing.”