Stevie Wonder announces political-themed tour for October

Sept. 20 (UPI) -- Legendary music icon Stevie Wonder, whose career has spanned half a century, announced Thursday a 10-stop U.S. tour timed to end just before election day.

His show is called Sing Your Song! As We Fix Our Nation's Broken Heart, echoing the title of his recent single that has a decidedly political message.

His tour is a call for "joy over anger, kindness over recrimination, peace over war," Wonder said, according to the release.

Wonder, a winner of 25 Grammys, will offer an unspecified number of complimentary tickets "as a special thank you ... to those in our communities who are already working tirelessly to fix our nation's broken heart," the release said.

The 74-year-old recently performed during last month's Democratic National Convention where he told the crowd he understands the importance of action.

"This is the moment to remember when you tell your children where you were and what you did ... We must choose courage over complacency," he told the crowd.

"It is time to get up!" he said. "And go vote!"

The music icon has been inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and the Songwriters Hall of Fame. He is a recipient of the Presidential Medal of Freedom and was a prominent voice in Martin Luther King Jr.'s birthday becoming a federal holiday.

Wonder is best known for classic hits such as "I Just Called to Say I Love You," "I Wish," "Sir Duke," "Higher Ground" and dozens of others over a career that dates back to the early 1970s.

Tickets for the tour go on sale Friday.

The tour is scheduled to open Oct. 8 in Pittsburgh and is planning stops in New York City, Philadelphia, Baltimore, Atlanta, Detroit, Milwaukee, and San Francisco, Grand Rapids, MI, and Greensboro, N.C.