Michael Benedetto wants to save the world with sound.
The 27-year-old Rockaway folk singer is releasing a solo album on Thursday to raise money for orphans.
“I was told if you have the opportunity to do something good then you should do it,” he said.
The album, titled “Burnt Hill Road,” was recorded in a cabin in upstate Roscoe, N.Y., during a two-week burst of creativity.
“It’s a mix of things,” Benedetto said. “It begins acoustically, gets electric and comes back.”
The six songs and four poems on the album sprouted from being in the Rockaways, he said.
“Being near the water inspires a lot of songs,” Benedetto said.
His album can be purchased at projectsofpeace.com for $1.29, a dollar which will go to fund children charities.
Benedetto said a few years ago he was bumming change on subway platforms to get by, so he wants to help the world any way he can.
“The reason I’m doing this is because I know what it’s like not to have money,” he said. “In order to receive you have to give first.”
Ayhan Sahin, who owns the record label Young Pals Music, said Benedetto is a multi-faceted musician who can switch from one instrument to the next seamlessly.
“The fact that he recorded the entire project in a cabin in upstate New York playing everything himself — including guitar, harmonica and a whole host of acoustic, roots-driven instruments — proves and distinguishes his remarkably authentic talent,” Sahin said.
Benedetto has been playing guitar and singing for over three years in what he descibes as a “pirate rock band” called “Rattrap Bumpkin.” He said music is his life. “It’s everything,” he said.
Matt Schilling, 30, of Howard Beach, who works as Benedetto’s business manager, said his work ethic impressed him.
“Mike is probably one of the hardest working guys I’ve seen in a while,” he said.
Benedetto’s goal for the project is ambitious.
“I want to raise a million dollars from New Yorkers to help kids,” he said. “It’s for a good cause.”
hkaroliszyn@nydailynews.com
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