Tag: Humanitarianism

A Trip to Haiti from American Idol Champ Kris Allen

Posted by Kat – February 24, 2010

Season 8 of American Idol was the season that brought Kris Allen into the official spotlight as the champion. But it seems that now, he is taking some of the notoriety and fame he has gained to put it to a good cause. After the simply devastating earthquake that has all but destroyed Haiti, Kris Allen, like so many other celebrities and musicians recently, made a trip out to the country to see first-hand the pain inflicted upon the people and to help find ways that he could assist in helping the country rebuild. The result? The “Idol Gives Back” Concept that originally popped up after the disaster will be revisited on Thursday as Allen will reappear on Idol during the episode to help bring awareness and humanitarianism to the front of everyone’s focus.

Kris Allen’s performance will be a major change for him, given that the last time he was on the stage for Idol was to finish the competition and claim victory. But, before he was an Idol competitor, he had done missionary work, and for Allen, it only seemed natural to go out to Haiti to help now. He was there under the United Nations and spent his time helping people at the temporary shelters, visiting and talking and even singing “Amazing Grace” for some of the people. He also handed out bags of rice whenever he could, and spent his time there gathering footage to show people what was really happening there and how they were rebuilding.

Allen’s performance on Idol will be a rendition of “Let It Be” by the Beatles, and footage, as well as his personal thoughts on his trip. He’ll be encouraging donations by text and providing people a much-needed first-hand account of how the relief effort is going in the torn country. For Allen, though, he is grateful and glad to be of help.

We Are the World’s Anniversary Will Be Honored

Posted by Kat – February 3, 2010

Ever since the original “We Are the World,” co-written by Michel Jackson and Lionel Richie, made waves everywhere to help encourage peace and humanitarianism, musicians have been inspired by that song to both write more music with that goal in mind, and to take the time to become humanitarians themsevles. Now, twenty-five years later, Lionel Richie has gotten together with Quincy Jones to give a new historic recording of “We Are the World.” Janet Jackson, Nick Jonas, Celine Dion, and Lil Wayne were some of the top musicians and singers, celebrities of the music world, who were there to record a new 25th anniversery version of the song. In fact, it was such a huge deal that ABC had news cameras available on Monday so that they could film the entire thing.

Of the different artists there for the recording was Janet Jackson, who was given the opportunity to sing the solo originally done by her brother, Michael, in the original recording. Also filling in for another musician was Lil Wayne, who performed Bob Dylan’s original part in the piece, to which he was hilariously adamant that he had not performed the part as well as Bob Dylan did. Over all, the atmosphere of the recording was hopeful, uplifting and clearly honoring the spirit of the original recording.

Curious about the actual range of musical celebrities they had at the performance of “We Are the World”? Well, with the youngest member being Justin Bieber, the fifteen-year-old singing sensation, then on the other end of the spectrum is Tony Bennet, who is eighty-three years old and represents a veteran of the musical world. If you’d like to see the new recording, you’ll be able to see it on February 12th in 3D with the opening of NBC’s broadcast of the Vancouver Winter Olympics.

$57 Million Bucks Raised In The Epic Hope For Haiti Concert

Posted by Kat – January 25, 2010

Did you tune in on Friday to the Hope For Haiti telethon and benefit concert? If you didn’t, then you missed one heck of a show. Not only did the insane event riase over $57 million in the name of the cause, but there were some absolutely mind-blowing performances by several different actors and musicians that stunned everyone. The Entertainment Industry Foundation’s Lisa Paulsen, the CEO and president, happily reported the absolutely staggering amount of money that people were able to donate for Haiti. In fact, a new standard had been set by those who donated.

Every major network, as well as a huge variety of major channels aired the telethon that spanned two hours and featured quite a few stars. Also, if you didn’t see it on TV, you could have watched it as a live stream online, and there were several opportunities to call in and donate what you could. From PBS, Bravo and MTV to ABC, NBC and CBS, the world watched the Hope For Haiti telethon and poured out their good will to the people of Haiti. Of the performers, Madonna, Bruce Springsteen, Radiohead and Beyonce, as well as many others, dazzled and used their influence and presence to help inspire good will from the public. The earthquake in Haiti has been estimated to have taken the lives of 200,000 people, and all the relief possible will matter in the weeks and months to come.

Even after the telethon itself, the people behind the telethon have decided to make the actual performance available as both a CD and on iTunes. The proceeds will go right to Haiti relief, and whatever help is possible is needed right now. If you’d still like to donate through other methods, you can still donate online, through text, or by phone.

Queen of Country To Meet Queen of Jordan

Posted by Kat – January 7, 2010

No one is exactly sure how this is working out, but Canadian country singing household name Shania Twain is somehow going to be interviewing the Queen of Jordan. No. No really. She is. On Friday, as in January 8th, 2010, Shania is going to be in Toronto for the Canadian Broadcasting Corp. radio station and will be having a chat with Queen Rania.

What exactly is she going to be doing and talking about with the Queen of Jordan? Shania Twain’s stint is going to be guest hosting a show for the CBC called “The Current,” and her main questions for the Queen will be based on what exactly the Queen’s global charity is planning to do in the future. Her charity, called 1Goal, is designed to help underpriviledged young people all over the world, something Twain knows of quite well. Also for this interview, Shania Twain plans to visit a school in inner-city Toronto for the radio show. She plans on performing for the students, as well as giving them a chance to meet and speak to someone who has been through childhood poverty, in the hopes of inspiring them to greater things.

In fact, one reason Shania is so popular in her home country is because of her own personal struggle. She experienced poverty as a child while growing up in Ontario, and yet she climbed to becoming a musical staple. Now, Shania Twain will be guest-judging “American Idol’s” new auditions and just carried the Olympic torch to her own home down, Timmins, Ontario, for the Olympic games in Vancouver.

For Shania Twain, she has quite a legacy she has established for herself, and to know that she’s using her fame to help others is admirable, at the very least. So look for her interview with the Queen of Jordan if you get CBC.