Update: A url for the petition is live at americanfootballmural.com if you'd like to share it easily with friends!

In 1997, three University of Illinois students living in Taft Hall formed the band American Football. In 1999, in the final four days before graduating college and moving home for good, they recorded the self-titled album American Football and disbanded shortly after. Though they had modest expectations for the record, its popularity has only increased over the years, becoming internationally beloved and critically-acclaimed.The purpose of this petition is to gauge public support for a mural in Champaign-Urbana commemorating the band.

 

 

American Football is not just a source of pride for the community, but also a reflection of the beautiful aesthetic of the area we call home. The intricate and innovative guitar work feels like light glittering through leaves on an autumn day in Central Illinois. Suspending and swirling somewhere between summer and winter, youth and adulthood, happiness and sadness, the album embodies how it feels to fall in love when we are young and our circumstances are temporary and changing. And although it reflects the spirit of this time and place, the album has captured the hearts of people around the world, with fans commonly traveling long distances to see the house in Urbana pictured on its iconic cover. 

 

 

American Football (LP1) is considered the most influential album of all-time in the genre of music called Midwest emo (practiced worldwide), as well as a significant influence in math rock. The album is ranked in the top 10 albums of 1999 and in the top 500 albums of all-time — monumental achievements for three University of Illinois students in their early 20’s. I personally believe that American Football’s 1999 album it is the most significant artistic achievement produced in Champaign-Urbana in the last quarter of a century.

(American Football reunited in 2014 and have released two more full-length albums.)

 

 

Watch: The Summer Ends: The Story of Midwest Emo

A mural celebrating the band would be a beautiful reminder of who we are as a culture — both to ourselves and to the world beyond. We are a culture that encourages, remembers, and celebrates creative achievement. And we are a culture that welcomes creative people of all kinds who want to do something new. The area is home to a history of creative achievements that can only be described as inspiring, from the first agricultural field experiment in America (at the Morrow Plots), to the invention of the modern web browser. This mural would be a reminder of that rich history of creative achievement. Maybe most importantly, it would be a reminder to the people of Champaign-Urbana —that when we follow our intuition and passion, incredible things are truly possible. Sometimes beyond our own belief. 

 

 

The purpose of this petition is purely to gauge community support for a mural, with no specifics yet defined.

Update: After some community feedback (thank you), we're leaning toward downtown Urbana as the best location for the mural. The cover of the band's 1999 album feels like the best image, because it is the image mostly commonly associated with the band, and is probably the most famous photograph ever taken in Champaign-Urbana. If you are a business owner in Urbana or have an idea for a location, please reach out as well. 💫

Lastly, this project would also be a strong opportunity for the beginning of a series of cultural landmarks across Champaign-Urbana, highlighting the significant creative contributions of the region (whether scientific, technological, artistic, or otherwise). A strong, example candidate would include the site of the first public demonstration of sound recorded simultaneously with pictures, on film, which happened in Urbana in 1922. This concept for a series of cultural landmarks was inspired by the Champaign County African American Heritage Trail, which is both beautiful and inspiring. Signs at each landmark could give exposition of each site, which would be helpful for the American Football mural as well. 

 

 

Thanks for your consideration regarding this endeavor, and please feel free to sign the petition and share your feedback. My understanding is that this website (Change.org) allows users to make donations upon signing the petition; please be aware that any donations go to the website itself and not to the project, and no donation is being collected on behalf of this project itself. This initiative is being orchestrated by a local photographer who has no affiliation with the band or record label, whether personally or professionally. He would also not be painting the mural, because he is not good at painting. 😆 The motivation is purely to help remind the people of Champaign-Urbana of what is so beautiful about this place we call home — whether it’s forever, or only for a time. Thanks for helping to make this city home. 

Watch: American Football - Never Meant (Music Video)