Posts Tagged ‘Lady Gaga’

16 Nov

Celebs Making a Difference–Ryan Seacrest

Posted by Andrew Mersmann in Inspiration. Tagged: , , , , , , , , .

Photo: Ryan Seacrest Foundation

I love when I learn something new and heartening about famous folks. When some celebrity has been fighting the good fight regardless of how brightly the spotlight does or does not shine on their philanthropic efforts, it makes me care more about that entertainer or athlete. There are so many that, because of their body of work and name recognition, can do so much to bring attention and focus to issues that matter to them…and often, a celeb will go that extra step and create their own foundation or charitable organization. Ryan Seacrest who is practically ubiquitous on all media platforms, uses his celebrity status to bring creative media to others as a way to heal. The Ryan Seacrest Foundation is a 501(c)(3) that is dedicated to bringing multimedia and interactive technology and entertainment to seriously ill and injured children. The first major project is building broadcast media centers in pediatric hospitals and wards so kids can explore radio and television. Raising spirits and getting individuals excited about creativity is healing, not only for those doing the creating, but for those listening/watching as well. Seacrest also uses his connections to bring lots of other celebrities on board to lend their support, from Justin Bieber to David Beckham, Lady Gaga and CeeLo Green to Taylor Swift and Conan O’Brien. The list goes on and on, as does the great work.

30 Dec

Celebrities Gone Good

Posted by Andrew Mersmann in Inspiration, Support. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , .

DoSomething.org

It’s that time of year when every form of publication and broadcast is doing round up pieces…the best of…the top ten…of the year gone by, or predictions for the year beginning. DoSomething.org has, on their Celebs Gone Good pages, an article that points up the charitable work of the famous among us—it’s a list I love. It is the Top 20 celebrities and their charitable work throughout 2010. The usual suspects are here: Ellen (in addition to her commitment to ending hunger, shining a spotlight on bullying and the amazing work of The Trevor Project), Oprah ($40 million to charities), Matt Damon (water.org), Alicia Keys (Keep a Child Alive)…and a few that really stepped up, perhaps for the first time, in the past year—Lady Gaga (Hands Up for Marriage Equality), Justin Bieber (Pencils of Promise), Sophia Bush (advocacy and awareness of the BP Deepwater Horizon oil spill disaster), Nick Jonas (Change for the Children Foundation and his tireless work for diabetes treatment and awareness)…

And you! Celebrate the great work you did in 2010, and plan to ramp it up even more in 2011–our commitments to the world grow because we grow…and we grow because of our commitments.

29 Nov

Radio Silence: Celebs Logging Off for Charity

Posted by Andrew Mersmann in Inspiration, Support. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , .

Alicia Keys BUY LIFE

If you’ve followed this blog, you know I am a huge Alicia Keys fan…her music is fantastic, and her charity work with Keep a Child Alive rocks your/my/our world. It’s also going to rock the Twitasphere and facebook universe on December 1, World AIDS Day.

On that day, an international day of remembrance, Alicia has persuaded several of her famous pals to forego any Twitter feed updates or facebook postings–to go digitally dark–until the charity has raised one million dollars. It may be hard for those addicted to telling their fans each time they eat a sandwich, but Lady Gaga, Justin Timberlake, Ryan Seacrest, Willow and Jaden Smith, Kim and Khloe Kardashian, Jennifer Hudson, Katie Holmes, Usher, and Serena Williams have all signed on. It isn’t just staying away from the iPad, but many of the celebs are doing a public service campaign appearing in coffins, signifying their “digital death” and how they can only survive if you “buy life” to resurrect them. It is a bold and attention-grabbing parallel to the work being done by Keep a Child Alive and this December 1 BUY LIFE program.

Keep A Child Alive buys more than just the pills needed to fight HIV/AIDS in Africa and India. It buys the essential nutrition, shelter, support and education to help ensure those pills are taken properly and effectively. It buys the things we all take for granted, but that make all the difference. A bed. A roof. A ride. A book. A smile. KCA offers children, their families and entire communities a shoulder to lean on and a heart that beats for them. Because KCA believes we can do something far bigger and better than buy the ability to live. We can buy the dignity that is life. We can buy compassion. Buy love. Buy the cure. Buy life.