Look To The Stars News: The Black Eyed Peas Foundation

Black Eyed Peas Unveil Music Academies

Fri, 31 Jul 2009 12:30:00 -0000

The Adobe Foundation and The Black Eyed Peas Foundation will unveil two new state-of-the-art music and multi-media academies for youth in Oakland and Redwood City, California.

The collaboration focuses on giving youth access to multi-media production tools for video, dance, music and art. Through the creation of digital media, teens are given the opportunity to comment on critical issues and inspire social change in their communities.

At a ribbon cutting ceremony on Aug.1, Grammy award-winning recording artists The Black Eyed Peas – will.i.am, apl.de.ap, Taboo and Fergie – will officially open the first integrated Peapod Adobe Youth Voices Academy located in Redwood City at the Mervin G. Morris Clubhouse of the Boys and Girls Club of the Peninsula. A second Academy will be housed in a new facility operated by Art In Action, a local non-profit youth leadership program in Oakland. Both academies will begin offering services starting in the fall for youth up to age 19. An estimated 200 Bay Area youth will participate in the academy programs annually.

“As a group, music has given us amazing opportunities. With the Peapod Foundation, we want to give back to inner-city kids so they can realize their potential through artistic and digital expression,” says will.i.am, who grew up in the projects in Boyle Heights, Calif. “Together with the Adobe Foundation, we are giving more kids a chance at a better future.”

The academies will incorporate a high-tech curriculum developed by Adobe Youth Voices with the latest professional-grade multi-media production software – including Adobe Creative Suite 4 Master Collection Suite, donated by Adobe Systems Incorporated, and professional music studio tools for a state-of-the-art recording facility donated by the Peapod Foundation. In addition to mentoring in the performing arts, youth participants will receive structured multi-media training in video, audio, photography, design and art, enabling them to creatively express their points of view on vital issues and contribute to social change in their communities.

“The Adobe Foundation and the Peapod Foundation share a vision for empowering youth to address social issues that directly affect them,” said Michelle Mann, executive director of the Adobe Foundation. “The launch of these two academy sites is just the beginning of our journey. It’s exciting to make such a direct, tangible impact by inspiring youth to demonstrate their potential and take action in their communities.”

Following the Redwood City academy opening, The Black Eyed Peas will make a special appearance to kick off Adobe Youth Voices Live! The event is the closing session of the first annual Adobe Youth Voices Summit, a three-day digital immersion experience bringing together 100 international youth (ages 14-19) and educators from underserved communities around the world.

The Adobe Youth Voices Summit at Stanford University (July 30 – Aug. 1) will focus on all aspects of digital media, including filmmaking, photography, animation and design, with workshops designed to empower youth to create media for social change and cultivate a deeper sense of social and civic engagement.

Summit highlights will include: an opening keynote by David Nakabayashi, creative director of the Industrial Light and Magic Art Department, mentoring in creating collaborative media projects using Adobe After Effects and Adobe Premiere Elements; a visit to Dreamworks Animation, makers of popular movies such as Shrek and Madagascar; and a keynote by Black Nature, a musician and aspiring filmmaker with the Refugee All Stars.

Youth participants will document their own travel and experiences at the summit through videos shot with Flip Video Ultra Camcorders donated through the Flip Video Spotlight program. They will have the opportunity to enhance their films with skills learned during the summit.

The summit will conclude with Adobe Youth Voices Live! an invitation-only event at the Yerba Buena Center in San Francisco the evening of Saturday, Aug. 1. In addition to the Black Eyed Peas’ appearance, the event will include exhibitions and screenings of youth media work developed during the summit.

More info can be found here.

Black Eyed Peas To Help Underprivileged Youth

Tue, 10 Feb 2009 15:00:00 -0000

Written by Delinda Lombardo

Underprivileged youth in California have been given the chance to get involved in film and music programs thanks, in part, to hip-hop group the Black Eyed Peas.

The group – through their charitable Peapod Foundation – have formed an initiative with the Adobe Foundation and the Entertainment Industry Foundation to give kids the opportunity to interact with their community through music, dance, video and art.

“As a group, we’ve made a commitment to help give teens the artistic tools and opportunities to help them realize their fullest potential,” said frontman will.i.am, “Thanks to the incredible generosity of Adobe Youth Voices (AYV), we are able to expand our vision and give even more kids a chance to be productive, enterprising adults.”

Last year, the Black Eyed Peas opened the first Peapod Academy, a state-of-the-art music and educational/recording facility serving foster care youth and other at-risk teens, at the Watts/Willowbrook Boys and Girls Club.

The new joint Adobe Youth Voices/Peapod Academy sites plan to expand worldwide, building on more than 160 sites in 31 countries. The facilities include a high-tech curriculum developed by AYV with the latest multi-media production tools and mentoring programs. Past students enrolled in AYV programs have had their work showcased at venues such as the Sundance Film Festival and the Human Rights Watch International Film Festival

The Adobe Foundation’s commitment includes a $1 million cash donation along with other in-kind support, including a comprehensive training program designed for youth and educators, and volunteer support from Adobe employees. The Peapod Foundation will contribute an on-site fully-equipped recording studio at each site, along with expertise and mentoring.

Stars Come Out For Black Eyed Peas Charity Gig

Mon, 09 Feb 2009 15:30:00 -0000

Written by Tim Saunders

Fans of the Black Eyed Peas were out in droves last Thursday night as the band played a special charity show at the Conga Room in Los Angeles.

Band members Fergie, will.i.am, Taboo and all performed at the show, and there were special guest appearances by Lupe Fiasco, Nikka Costa and Boyz II Men. Proceeds went to The Peapod Foundation, an organization set up by the band to give back to the band members’ communities around the world. Founded by will.i.am and Polo Molina of Grassroots Productions, The Peapod benefit concerts date back to the earliest incarnation of The Black Eyed Peas and began as charity toy drives for Los Angeles based children and local orphanages.

“Music penetrates through all types of boundaries and crosses all kinds of barriers,” will.i.am told the Associated Press before the show. “It gives us a commonality through rhythm and melody. Music has brought the world together.”

“For people without the means or a place to go, it feels good for us to give them opportunities,” added Fergie.

LA Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa was also on hand at the event, and was presented with the Peapod Leadership Award in recognition of his commitment to arts education in the city.

“I believe in what the Peapod Foundation is about,” he said. “When you’ve been blessed, you’ve got to bless others. The Peapod Foundation is all about giving back.”

Also in attendance were Slash and Rihanna.

Black Eyed Peas member apl.de.ap was absent from the event due to the murder of his brother.

2008 Cartier Love Charity Braclets Launched In LA

Fri, 20 Jun 2008 15:30:00 -0000

Written by Tim Saunders

It wasn’t just about the bling when a major jeweler hosted a star-studded event to launch a line of exquisite bracelets to benefit a worthwhile charity last night.

Stars such as Nicole Richie, Joel Madden, Eva Mendes, Fergie, Hilary Duff, and Janet Jackson attended the official launch of the Love Charity Bracelet in Los Angeles, and pledged their support of the initiative.

This year’s bracelets are made of silk cord with different colors corresponding to a selected charity, and feature two links – one white and one rose gold. They retail for $995, with $200 of that price going towards one of the charities selected by each celebrity. The list of celebrities, colors, and charities include:

Janet Jackson – grey; the Ovarian Cancer National Alliance.
Fergie – orange; The Black Eyed Peas Foundation.
Good Charlotte – deep green; the Richie Madden Children’s Foundation.
Hilary Duff – purple; Blessings in a Backpack, a program run by USA Harvest.
Ashanti – royal blue; Boys’ and Girls’ Clubs of America.

This is the third year the campaign has been run, and it has so far raised over $2.24 million for sixteen different charities.

“Cartier is about selling joy and emotion,” said Frédéric de Narp, president and chief executive officer of Cartier North America. “You can’t pretend to sell emotion if you don’t care for people.”

To view the bracelet and find out where to buy one, visit the Cartier website.

Black Eyed Peas Rock The Peapod Party

Mon, 11 Feb 2008 09:10:28 -0000

Written by Delinda Lombardo

The Black Eyed Peas held their fourth annual charity concert at the Avalon in Hollywood last week, with a plethora of celebrity friends turning up to raise money for charity.

And even before the concert started, front woman Fergie was eager to spread the love.

“Travelling around the world and seeing disease and poverty, for me it’s about giving back,” she said.

The Peas’ concert was to benefit their Peapod Foundation, which provides aid to underprivileged children while also introducing them to new musical and technological programs.

“We’ve been doing this since 1999, and it started with a toy drive for kids in Pasadena,” said B.E.P member Taboo. “But now we have all these artists coming to support us, and it’s good because we give back to the community and now to all different countries.”

Supporting the not-to-be-missed concert, and picking up the microphone at times, were The Roots, Natasha Bedingfield, M.C. Hammer, Snoop Dogg, Slash, and Ludacris. During the show, Snoop attempted to get Hammer to bust a move, and later, Fergie was joined by Slash during her solo set – for which she received a standing ovation from the audience.

“My kids love Slash, they be playing ‘Guitar Hero’,” Snoop said.

Earlier this year, the Peas kicked it up a notch when they opened the Peapod Music and Arts Academy at the Watts/Willowbrook Boys and Girls Club in Los Angeles. In an interview with The Associated Press, Peas frontman will.i.am said one of the organization’s main goals is to teach children how to become music moguls.

“I would like to have these workshops all around the world, these music schools, that teach people technology, so that way they can bring back money into communities,” he said. “We gave them green-screens, ProTools equipment, high-definition digital cameras – everything they’d need to make music and cut films. Peapod gives them the same tools we have and a platform to showcase it.”

Even though the Watts center is a pilot program, that isn’t going to stop the Peas.

“We’re going to East Los Angeles next, and hopefully all over the country,” said will.i.am. “Afterwards, we hope to hit South Africa, the Philippines, Brazil and others. We want to continue to build these hubs all over the world to give inner-city kids tools to do these things.”

Black Eyed Peas Hold Charity Party

Tue, 04 Dec 2007 10:35:34 -0000

Written by Adrienne Phillip

It was a balmy night in Hollywood, but that did not keep celebrities devoted to friendship and charity away from a birthday fundraiser for apl.de.ap (Allan Pineda Lindo) of hip hop group the Black Eyed Peas. The red carpet arrivals streamed into the Vanguard Nightclub on November 27 with their party shoes on and their hearts on their sleeves – they were there to have fun and raise money for charities in the Philippines.

Black Eyed Peas members Taboo and will.i.am organized the event to celebrate apl.de.ap’s 33rd birthday and to pay tribute to the charities that have helped him in the past. Will.i.am was the first of the group to arrive, and he spoke with the press about his holiday plans and new musical ventures with Mariah Carey and Michael Jackson. Will was excited about the fundraiser because it showed how far he and his friends had come – they were now able to bring their blessings full circle and give back to the communities that raised them.

Taboo was next to arrive. He was excited to be back in the States, and was happy to spend time with his fourteen year old son Joshua. He also said that events like this showed the love the Black Eyed Peas had for others. When they established The Black Eyed Peas Foundation in the early nineties, the band wanted to be sure to give something back to each of their diverse backgrounds – wil.i.am represents the USA, Taboo is of Mexican descent, and apl.de.ap was born and raised in the Philippines.

“For me to go to the Philippines and for him to go to Mexico to integrate our cultures is beyond success, beyond selling millions of records”, Taboo said to explain how the Black Eyed Peas were more than just about music. But the best part of putting this evening together for him was “being able to be with my best friends. Giving back to our community and our fans and doing it to make a difference not only in the States but overseas… to be able to be a part of that and to express our music and talent is a great thing because, beyond selling records, its about giving back for us…We have already won Grammy’s, MTV awards, sold 27 million records. What is there left to do? So now we are giving back and letting people know we are humans before artists.”

Apl. was beaming with pride when he arrived, excited that he was able to be part of an evening to raise money for charities… because he was raised by a charity himself. As a child in the Philippines, the singer was sponsored by an American through the Pearl S. Buck Foundation. His sponsor then decided to adopt him and brought him to the United States were he was able to achieve his dreams.

“It is very important to me to give back the same opportunity that was given to me,” Apl. said on the red carpet. “That’s the only way I know how to do it.”

Apl. is now going to try to hold a benefit annually, and give most of the money to the Pearl S. Buck Foundation, as well as to other Filipino Charities. The most challenging part of the evening for him was getting sponsors, but as soon as the name of a group as successful as the Black Eyed Peas was attached, sponsors came right on board.

The partygoers were from television, music, sport, and movies, as well as many from Los Angeles’ Filipino community. The celebrities who attended spoke of their own charities and how good they feel during the holiday season when they can help others.

Ultimate Fighting Champion Quinton ‘Rampage’ Jackson, said he was there to support the charities of his friends. “I think it is real important to give back because God giveth and God taketh away…. I support my old high school wrestling team…charity starts at home too – I help out a lot of my family.”

Nate Parker, who will be starring in the new film The Great Debaters with Denzel Washington, was happy to be part of the evening. He is learning from some of the biggest givers in Hollywood that you have to be proud of where you come from and support the people who are still there. “Working with Denzel was a learning experience, not just about acting, but life and how to appreciate what you have. Helping out charities is the way to show you care.”

The celebrities that attended the event included Bi Ling, Bobby Brown, as well as funny guys Chris Reed, Aries Spears, and Ken Davitian. Young Filipino rapper Lil Jordan spit some lyrics on the red carpet for the crowd and showed his support for his ancestral country. VH1’s Celebrity Rap Superstar winner Shar Jackson was there in support of Apl. because he was a friend who always put others before his own needs.

“Hollywood needs more groups like the Black Eyed Peas to give back to the world,” she said.

After greeting the fans, Apl. performed some of his solo music and then shined the spotlight on the up-and-coming groups that the Black Eyed Peas were producing. The evening was deemed a success as it raised money for a great cause, created awareness for the Pearl S. Buck Foundation and other charities, and showed how giving to charities can make a difference in the life of a child.

Look To The Stars News: The Black Eyed Peas Foundation

Black Eyed Peas Unveil Music Academies

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