September 25, 2009 | Read Time: 2 minutes
While many celebrities give their voice to a cause, the music star Usher says he is putting his money where his mouth is — pledging $1-million to help youth around the world.
“My contribution is a reminder to all whom I’ve influenced that I’m not just talking the talk, I’m actually walking the walk,” the singer said in an interview with The Chronicle at the Clinton Global Initiative. “I’m going to make this donation to show you that I’m serious.”
The gift will support Powered by Service, a new effort announced at the Clinton meeting and run by Usher’s Atlanta charity. The project will provide $500 grants to young people ages 12 to 20 to get involved in fighting malaria, ending drug use, or other charitable work.
The grantees will be picked by a team of eight young people, who are graduates of a summer camp that Usher started to teach kids about the entertainment and sports industries. For their new assignment, the so-called moguls in training received a two-month course on philanthropy.
“Who better to motivate the movement than those who are affected by it,” Usher said about the decision to put young people in charge.
Usher said his passion for service extends back to when he was growing up in Chattanooga, Tenn. The Boys and Girls Clubs, public schools, and other groups helped him when he and his friends formed a dance troop that would perform to promote ways to prevent gang violence.
Today, after selling millions of records and winning five Grammys, he wants to emulate musician-philanthropists Quincy Jones and Michael Jackson. He also credited the Clinton Global Initiative and its members for keeping him inspired.
“To sit here and hear about water purification, to hear about famine, to hear about some of the issues that reside around the world, it just reminds you of how much work we have left to do,” he said. “Just when you feel like, I’ve done enough, I just want to take a break, this reminds you that there are so many people in need.”
