For over 20 years, the Vans Warped Tour has inspired teens to break the mold, make bold statements, and be a little rebellious, all while bringing them the best music. In case you missed it, 2018 marks the last hurrah of the iconic tour — but to keep the positive energy of the festival going truth®, one of the largest and most effective youth tobacco prevention campaigns, teamed up with Warped Tour one more time. Their mission? To inspire teens to be the generation to end smoking for good.
Since the beginning of the Warped Tour in 2000, truth has partnered with the concert series to spread awareness among youth and young adults about how to fight back against Big Tobacco’s exploitative practices. Currently, truth is making its way through 35 stops across the U.S. with its iconic orange truth truck and team of riders, dancing their way across the country while sharing the facts about tobacco use so that concert goers can make their own informed decisions.
With most smokers starting by the age of 26, the work truth is doing with young people is especially crucial. Across the span of truth's partnership with the Vans Warped Tour, they've cultivated legions of passionate young people dedicated to "finishing" smoking once and for all. The teen smoking rate also dropped from 23 percent, to a historic low of 5.4 percent over the course of this partnership. That amounts to millions of lives saved, and a generation that has made positive strides.
For this final tour, the truth truck is giving out merchandise, hosting games and throwing a series of all-out dance parties, all while spreading awareness and inspiring action in the fight to end smoking. So while you may be attending the final stops of the Warped Tour to relive all the music-filled, head-banging moments from your youth, truth’s on-the-ground activation is proving itself a required stop.
"The Vans Warped Tour offers an invaluable opportunity to engage with our audience in a unique and personal way while building a movement of activists nationwide," said Eric Asche, Chief Marketing Officer of Truth Initiative®, the national public health organization that directs and funds truth. "We know music is a powerful force for change, and our years on tour have given us the chance to inspire youth to use their voice and speak out against Big Tobacco. We thank Vans for their part in helping us save lives."
And though truth has saved hundreds of thousands of lives so far, the work is far from over. "Big or small, every action counts," says Kami Thomas, tour manager and four-time tour rider. "We hope we are encouraging the people we meet this summer to spread the truth message in their own communities long after the tour is over."
This article is sponsored by truth. To learn more about the truth and Vans partnership, click here.
