In the past two years, countless families have experienced heartache, many losing loved ones and others left isolated and alone. One family, however, has chosen to sing through their sadness – bringing hope for themselves and whoever might be watching.
“We just wanted to let him know that we love him” says Jewell Richins, introducing a video tribute to his late father Joe. His two daughters, KB and Karrisyn, follow this with a moving rendition of Grammy-nominated track ‘Rise Up.’ An emotional moment for the father of two, the girls sing their hearts out – showing not only love for their late grandfather, Joe, but enormous talent in the process.
Originally sung by R&B artist Andra Day, 2021 saw ‘Rise Up’ performed at the virtual inauguration of President Joe Biden. When speaking to WBLS about its meaning, Day said “It was really a song about perseverance” – something clearly expressed by the Richins in their video from February 2020.
A note in the video’s description read “This goes out to my father#2, dialysis ends & a new journey begins. We will never forget you Joe Hill” – describing the heartbreak of their loss but also the courage to move forward.
With over five million viewers, the video inspired watchers to reach out to their loved ones. One commenter on YouTube praised the clip, saying “Wow… love your family, everyone. You never know when you’re gonna lose someone who can never be replaced.”
Now, a year and a half on, the Richins are keeping spirits high with several new videos highlighting the talent of elder daughter KB.
One clip, published in October this year, has received close to a million views so far. Accompanied once more by her proud father, KB delivers a note-perfect take on recent Adele smash ‘Easy on me’ – her dad once again tearful, but this time with a look of overwhelming pride for his daughter.
The public certainly agrees, with another YouTuber exclaiming “Her voice has grown so much. Kudos dad for letting your daughter’s light shine!!!!!”
In a post to his Instagram account earlier in the year, Jewell posed with his two daughters and a caption below the picture read “My beautiful daughters, I was blessed with two of you…You will never know how proud I am of all the things you do.” You can follow the Richins family singalongs at Jewell Richins’ YouTube account.