John Ondrasik Tells Us About His New Viral Ukraine Song

BUCK: John Ondrasik of Five for Fighting fame. That’s his new song, “Can One Man Save the World?” about the president of Ukraine. John is actually with us now. John, thanks for calling in.

ONDRASIK: Buck, how you doing? Nice to talk to you again.

BUCK: Thanks for coming to join… Well, I was gonna say “us.” Today it’s just me. But we’re always appreciative of you calling in. Tell us, what made you think that this was the song to write at this point in time?

ONDRASIK: You know, I think the whole dynamic changed when Secretary Blinken basically offered Zelensky a plane ticket and he said, “Save your plane ticket. Send me some stingers and maybe a few MiGs.” I think a lot of us were like, “Who is this guy?” You know, we’ve been used to decades of passivity from the West. You know, start with Obama in Crimea, the Syria red line that was lost in the sand.

And the only thing we talk about Hong Kong is LeBron trying to cancel Daryl Morey. You know, we shrugged our shoulders at Hong Kong and finally here’s some comedian standing up to authoritarianism, and I think the person probably more shocked than anyone is Putin. So, how can you not be inspired by this guy, his strength, and the Ukrainian people.

BUCK: How has the song been met so far by folks listening? Are you seeing it catching on even more than you had anticipated?

ONDRASIK: Yeah, way more. I really had no expectation. It was one of those songs that you kind of write in the moment. I wrote it, record it, put it out within 48 hours as kind of a scream. And I do think that folks around the world are finding strength in this man. You saw this week, the prime ministers of Poland and Slovenia and Czechoslovakia went to Kiev. You could not have imagined that weeks ago. Russian reporters are starting to betray Putin in the press — and, again, I think they’re just following his example. Courage is contagious.

BUCK: Speaking to John Ondrasik, singer, songwriter, Grammy nominated, and of Five for Fighting. Got a new song, “Can One Man Save the World?” about Volodymyr Zelensky and his fight against Vladimir Putin and Russia. Tell me this. Where can folks go to hear the song, John? Where should they go if they want to check out the full three minutes or so?

ONDRASIK: Well, thanks, Buck. Yeah. You know, the usual streaming, Spotify, Apple Music, there is a YouTube lyric video up there. “Can One Man Save the World?” Also, if you want a free download. It’s important to me that this song is given away for free. Just go to FiveforFighting.com, download the song for free. Share it around the world. I think every voice on this matters, and we have to support this guy. It’s certainly I think a critical point in history.

BUCK: John Ondrasik. John, thanks for stopping by. Always appreciate you calling in.

ONDRASIK: Thanks. Have a good weekend.