USHER FIX

Grammy Award Winner and Humanitarian Usher Raymond IV, announced today that his non-profit organization, Usher’s New Look, will take Powered By Service, an initiative from Usher’s New Look that encourages young people to utilize their talents and resources to make a difference in their community, to the Global Peace Convention in the Philippines from December 10-14, 2009. At the Clinton Global Initiative in September 2009, Usher’s New Look launched Powered by Service and a partnership with the United Nations Foundation to tackle critical issues facing the world including malaria prevention.

In the true spirit of service and activating grassroots leaders on a global level, Usher is sending a delegation to the Global Peace Convention — an extraordinary worldwide gathering of social entrepreneurs. Shawn H. Wilson, President of Usher’s New Look and James Harris, newly appointed youth member of the Board of Directors, will be present at the convention to launch Powered By Service on an international stage. Harris, 20, was inducted into the Board of Directors for his exemplary leadership as a young artist, community change agent and his commitment to personal academic and career success. As a former New Look camper, current Mogul In Training, member of the Youth Philanthropy and Advisory Board, and one of the first young people to execute a Powered By Service project, James has been engaged in every program Usher’s New Look offers.

“The Global Peace Convention is Powered By Service- it’s a gathering of like-minded people that are dedicated to tackling critical issues worldwide,” said Usher Raymond IV, Founder of Usher’s New Look.

The Global Peace Convention (GPC) is an annual gathering of peace builders from around the world. It began as a result of the excitement and positive impact of the Global Peace Festivals (GPF) held throughout since 2007. The Convention is an opportunity to exchange information and learn from the best practices to improve the quality of all peace-building projects. These include joint efforts made by Powered by Service and Global Peace Service Alliance (GPSA) to empower youth in hot spots like war-torn Mindanao and western Kenya. UNL and GPSA will team up to promote youth empowerment to eradicate Malaria and promote national healing following the post-election tribal violence. The Convention brings together key leaders in the realms of politics, civil society and religion to discuss creative approaches and foster youth action to tackle pressing global issues.

“Usher’s New Look is excited to expand Powered By Service and learn best practices from global decision makers and youth leaders,” said Shawn H. Wilson, President of Usher’s New Look.

The theme of the Global Peace Convention in 2009 is “Peacebuilding for the 21st Century: Interfaith, Service and Family.”

“Usher’s New Look understands that service is a simple and selfless act which benefits others and enables people to connect despite their differences,” said David Caprara, Director of Global Peace Service Alliance. “The GPSA Alliance is honored to help expand the pathbreaking success of UNL’s Powered by Service by partnering with grassroots youth service initiatives in Kenya, the Philippines, US and other nations working multilaterally.”

The Global Peace Convention rises on the foundation of service, interfaith cooperation, and families dedicated to peace, the core hallmarks of more than 30 Global Peace Festivals in 18 nations on 5 continents over the past three years.

The universal ideal of ‘One Family Under God’ serves as the organizing principle of the Global Peace Festivals along with mounting a global culture of service.

About Usher’s New Look and Powered by Service

Youth ages 12 through 20 around the country are eligible to apply for a $500 Powered By Service grant by logging onto poweredbyservice.org or ushersnewlook.org. Grants will be awarded to exceptional service ideas so that youth are not only called to serve, but have the tools they need to create real change. For more information about Usher’s New Look or Powered By Service, please visit the Web site at http://www.poweredbyservice.org or http://www.ushersnewlook.org.

Source: PRnewswire.com & Ushersnewlook.org

For more pics of the event click here.

EURWEB.COM

Former President Bill Clinton opened his Clinton Global Initiative on Tuesday with a speech from President Obama, and appearances from singers Alicia Keys and Usher – both on behalf of the respective charities.      

Clinton’s annual Manhattan event, now in its fifth year, gathers world leaders, CEOs, philanthropists and nonprofit officials together for a series of seminars and the aim of securing concrete commitments and solutions for such problems as climate change and poverty.      

Usher has said his organization Usher’s New Look will establish a global campaign to get hundreds of thousands of young people to volunteer around the world. Alicia Keys’ Keep a Child Alive establishes a series of safe houses in India to protect HIV-positive women and children and children orphaned by AIDS.       

In the coming days, a notable influx of Hollywood figures and their causes will be presented at the conference.

Today, Brad Pitt will appear at a session along with Clinton and Michael Darden, executive director of the Make It Right Foundation, which Pitt founded. They will update Make It Right’s New Orleans efforts to build green, affordable housing in the Lower 9th Ward.       

This evening, Quincy Jones will be among the honorees in the Clinton Global Citizen Awards, recognizing his efforts in famine relief and children’s health. Alicia Keys and Juanes are scheduled to perform, and Ben Stiller is to host.       

Any celebrity who commits to work with the Clinton Global Initiative will be expected to follow through on their philanthropic efforts or be denied invites to future Clinton conferences, as is the rule for all participants.       

Clinton’s annual Manhattan event, now in its fifth year, gathers world leaders, CEOs, philanthropists and nonprofit officials together for a series of seminars and the aim of securing concrete commitments and solutions for such problems as climate change and poverty.       

Other sessions will feature Julia Ormond, on an effort to end human trafficking; Ted Turner and Bob Wright, talking about how philanthropies work with the business community; Matt Damon and his nonprofit Water.org, with a goal of providing safe drinking water and sanitation to a minimum of 50,000 people over a three year period; and GE chairman Jeffrey Immelt, addressing infrastructure.       

Others expected include Barbra Streisand, Ashton Kutcher, Demi Moore, Goldie Hawn and Fran Drescher.

PNNONLINE.ORG

Usher’s New Look (UNL), a non-profit organization supporting youth to use their talents and become corporate and community leaders, today announced Powered By Service-a bold new initiative to rebrand service and fundamentally change the role of youth in communities.

Powered by Service is designed to get young people in the world over-involved in changing the most pressing problems facing them and their communities –whether it be preventing malaria, stopping the spread of HIV/AIDS, ending gang violence or increasing access to clean water.

The goal of Powered By Service is to mobilize over 5,000,000 youth in a global call to service that will ultimately touch the lives of 50 million individuals.

At the Clinton Global Initiative, Chairman and Founder of UNL, Usher Raymond IV, pledged $1 million to Powered By Service to support young people as they address the world’s most pressing problems through innovative service projects.

“Over the last 10 years through the work with New Look’s partners including, HandsOn Network, City Year, Public Allies and ServiceNation, I have seen the POWER of putting service learning skills in the hands of youth,” said Usher. “Youth can change problems in a local community or halfway around the world through service. It’s a matter of putting the skills and the financial resources directly in their hands and letting them create change on their terms. Powered By Service is not about one organization or one campaign it is about collaborating with diverse partners to build on the foundation of service so many have created. Only by working together can we inspire all young people to be Powered By Service!”

Young people all over the world can participate in Powered By Service. Participants will have access to online toolkits and opportunities to apply for financial resources to support their projects. Grants will be awarded to exceptional service ideas so that youth are not only called to serve, but have the tools they need to create real change. “I am so excited that someone like Usher has committed $1 million to youth service,” said Ashley Hurt, Usher’s New Look youth leader. “It is important for people to understand that youth have the power to serve with whatever talents we bring to the table.”

Usher has personally contributed $1 million to the initiative, but this is bigger than any single person or organization. The Corporation for National and Community Service’s Learn and Serve America, the United Nations Foundation, EarthEcho International and numerous other organizations and individuals contributed to the initiative to ensure it reaches youth both in the U.S. and abroad. One of the first projects that Powered By Service will address is the Nothing But Nets campaign to end malaria. Millennium Equity I also announced its commitment of $7.4 million to Powered By Service to address the global digital divide and make advanced technology accessible for all service projects. Collectively, the partners have provided more than $8 million in funding for youth service initiatives.

“New Look is not the only organization that sees the potential in our youth. Organizations like the Corporation for National and Community Service and the United Nations Foundation were the first to step up and say, we want to invest, truly invest in our youth!” said Shawn H. Wilson, president, Usher’s New Look. “It is especially exciting to be a part of the Clinton Global Initiative with all of our partners to demonstrate how youth can serve locally but have an impact internationally.”

Together, UNL, Powered By Service, and young leaders have the power to make significant change on a global scale. For more information about Usher’s New Look or Powered By Service, please visit the Web site.

Source: Pnnonline.org, EURweb.com, & Life.com

By KELLEY L. CARTER
USA Today

LOS ANGELES — Usher Raymond wants to build a philanthropic portfolio just like that of his idol, Michael Jackson.

“I paid close attention to what celebrities like Michael Jackson had done with his brand,” Raymond said less than three weeks before the pop star’s death. “He made philanthropy something that was kind of like a sense of heart work, and not hard work. All of the hard work went into who he was as a celebrity; the heart work made a difference. ”

It’s fitting that just six days after Raymond’s tear-filled tribute at the Jackson public memorial, he’ll continue in the footsteps of the King of Pop. (Raymond declined interviews to discuss his performance at the tribute, out of respect for the Jackson family.)

Monday marked the official start of Camp New Look, a Raymond-backed summer camp that invites 130 children to spend two weeks in Atlanta learning about the business side of sports and entertainment.

Raymond, 30, who is part owner of the Cleveland Cavaliers and also fronts a top-selling men’s and women’s fragrance line (Usher HE and Usher SHE), didn’t want to simply write a check to charity. He wanted to work with the kids himself, he says.

“They say in life you can be a product of your experience or a product of your environment. I choose to be a product of my experience.”

In the camp, the children get to taste what Usher’s life is like by working behind the scenes in sports, entertainment and business. One summer, for example, the children were able to come up with a marketing campaign for a new fragrance, including contract negotiations and pitch meetings.

“There are a few very unique cases where kids come out of … hardworking families, kids like Serena and Venus (Williams). Kids like Tiger Woods. And then there are cases where kids come from the bottom,” he says. “Every kid may not be able to be a football player, athlete, artist, but there are so many other talents that kids have.”

Usher’s own sons — 1 and one-half-year-old Usher Raymond V and 7-month-old Naviyd Ely Raymond — are a source of inspiration, but Raymond says he has always been interested in motivating children. (In mid-June, Raymond filed for divorce from the children’s’ mother, Tameka Foster. In the filing, the singer says the marriage is “irretrievably broken.” )

“This was something that I did before I was a dad. I want to be motivating to those who have talent or who just need motivation,” he says. “With my campers, I don’t look at them as children. I look at them as young adults.

“These kids come here and they’re like ‘Oh, wow … we’re going to learn about entertainment!’ But they leave engaged in life and knowing that, ‘I can have a future outside of music.’ That’s what makes me most proud.”

Source: Honoluluadvertiser.com & Exclusiveaccess.net

R&B; star Usher has been bouncing around Washington, D.C. since yesterday, promoting national service and the Nothing But Nets campaign. POLITICO sat down with him at the U.N. Foundation for a lengthy interview today and asked him for his opinion on President Barack Obama
“Everyone has been so critical,” said Usher. “But yet the issues that we’re facing, they’re not issues that just started today, last week, last month. I think that he’s doing an incredible job as a president.”
Usher stopped by the White House today, but just missed Obama, who was on his way to Iowa.
“I did get a chance to see the Oval Office,” said Usher. “Everytime I go he’s either extremely busy or I’m just missing him. But it’s always a good time. That’s never bad to visit the White House.”
Click here to listen to their full interview with Usher and to learn about the star’s take on how Washington’s political scene has changed, his goals for national service and whether he’d ever run for office.