Plenty of drops in the ocean
January 28, 2022

Rihanna donates $15 million to fight climate change

Rihanna has donated $15 million to the Climate Justice Alliance, the Indigenous Environmental Network, the Movement for Black Lives, and 15 other organizations that work to restore climate justice in the United States and Rihanna’s home – the Caribbean. “Climate disasters, which are growing in frequency and intensity, do not impact all communities equally, with communities of color and island nations facing the brunt of climate change,” Rihanna says in a statement announcing her support.

Global Citizen Live concert that featured performances from Stevie Wonder, Jennifer Lopez, BTS and Elton John and dozens of other stars, raised more than $1.1 billion in commitments and pledges over the weekend to fight extreme poverty, Billboard reports. It secured pledges from France for 60 million COVID-19 vaccine doses for developing countries, corporate pledges for planting 157 million trees around the world, and the U.S. government pledged $295 million for humanitarian needs around the world caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. Major philanthropic commitments came from the Lego Foundation, who pledged $150 million to support UNICEF and other partners working with children, and Rotary International, which pledged $98 million in grant funding in 2022.

Beauty behind the madness
April 05, 2021

The Weeknd donates $1m in food aid to Ethiopia

“My heart breaks for my people of Ethiopia as innocent civilians ranging from small children to the elderly are being senselessly murdered and entire villages are being displaced out of fear and destruction” - The Weeknd wrote on Instagram announcing his donation of $1m in food aid to Ethiopia, amid the ongoing conflict in the country’s Tigray region. This $1 million will provide 2 million meals through the United Nations World Food Program, CNN reports. The singer was born Abel Tesfaye in Canada to Ethiopian immigrant parents, Makkonen and Samra Tesfaye.

Taylor Swift and her mom Andrea donated $50,000 to Vickie Quarles, the mother of five daughters whose husband, Theodis Ray Quarles, died of COVID-19, according to Yahoo News. Their donation through GoFundMe fundraiser raised the total amount to over $62,000. Previously, in December, the singer donated $13,000 to two mothers who were struggling to pay their bills during the pandemic. In March of last year, Swift sent checks to her longtime fans who had lost their jobs during the ongoing crisis. She also donated money to Nashville record store Grimey's New and Preloved Music to pay and provide healthcare for each of the retailer's employees for three months.

That plant needs watering
December 02, 2020

Spotify donates $500,000 to U.S. indie venues

Spotify has donated $500,000 to the National Independent Venue Association in a show of solidarity with music venues in the U.S. that aren't part of a conglomerated promotion apparatus such as Live Nation or AEG. The donation comes at a critical time for indie venues across the U.S. as they face a long winter without live shows, possibly even well into the next year as well. Spotify's half-million-dollar donation is the second-largest that NIVA has received since its inception - only Anheuser-Busch has given more, $1 million.That plant needs watering

A bass guitar and effects pedal used by Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, signed guitars from Liam Gallagher, Eric Clapton and Mark Knopfler, handwritten lyrics from Florence Welch, Robbie Williams, and Ellie Goulding, a mixing desk from Craig David, and a signed synth from Chemical Brothers are all on sale at an online auction with the aim to help live events industry workers. Stagehand auction also includes memorabilia from Sam Smith, Jess Glynn and FKA Twigs, with more constantly being added, NME reports. Also benefiting the Stagehand initiative will be Prints for Music, a sale of more than 100 intimate photographs of stars including Grace Jones, Neil Young and Fela Kuti. Today, a £10,000 box set by Porcupine Tree' Steven Wilson, limited to a single copy, was sold at an auction, with proceeds from the one-off item going to Music Venue Trust, the charity lobbying for the UK’s grassroots venues under threat amid the coronavirus pandemic.

A$AP Rocky donated 120 meals to families at a homeless shelter in New York where he, his mother and sister spent some time nearly two decades ago. The rapper, real name Rakim Mayers, personally turned delivery man on Thanksgiving eve on Wednesday to distribute the food from one of his favourite eateries in New York, Amy Ruth's Restaurant in Harlem, according to People. The 32-year-old musician gifted the food to the Regent Family Residence - a homeless shelter that serves 83 families, including 111 children - where his mum, Renee Black, stayed after falling on hard times in the early 2000s.

I will always fund you
November 18, 2020

Dolly Parton helped fund Covid-19 vaccine

Dolly Parton donated $1 million to biotechnology company Moderna based out of Cambridge, Massachusetts to help them fund research for Covid-19 vaccine, which they recently announced as finished, Guardian reports. Parton heard about the project last spring through her friend Dr. Naji Abumrad from Vanderbilt University who treated her after a car accident. Vanderbilt’s research subsequently played a key role in developing Moderna’s vaccine.

He's got the power
November 02, 2020

Composer with dementia inspires £1m donation

A viral video of Paul Harvey, 80, a former music teacher with dementia, performing a piece based on just four notes, has inspired a £1m charity donation from Scotland's first ever billionaire Sir Tom Hunter. Mr Harvey is suffering from dementia, but has continued to be able to play and compose piano pieces. His improvisation, 'Four Notes' has also reached the top of the iTunes and Amazon charts last week.

Good men show up from out of nowhere
October 11, 2020

Beautiful South's Paul Heaton paid Q Magazine staff when the paper closed

Ted Kessler, final editor of Q Magazine has praised Beautiful South singer Paul Heaton for his generosity, revealing how Heaton supported staff when the publication closed, BBC reports. Kessler explained how the star made a large donation to the magazine this summer, which was shared amongst 40 staff and freelancers working for Q at the time. "It was just meant to make sure people weren't left on their arse" - Heaton said.

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