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
