Stay Connected
Atlanta Black Star/Culture
CultureEntertainment

Beyonce Will Host ‘Signature Charity Events’ to Aid Victims of the Flint Water Crisis

Posted byBy Kiersten Willis | Published on: CommentsComments (0)
Billboard

Billboard

Beyonce announced today she will partner with United Way on her world tour to assist with the Flint water crisis. The partnership will collect resources and donate money for local residents.

According to a press release, Beyonce has community outreach and funding plans to go along with her Formation World Tour, which starts April 27 in Miami. One method will allow fans to donate money at CrowdRise.com toward the United Way’s Flint efforts. Fans who do so will be entered to win VIP concert tickets to the vocalist’s show. They will also be able to give back in local communities and at venues during the tour.

When Beyonce makes a stop at Detroit’s Ford Field on June 14, she’ll hold an event to “serve as a celebration of the resourcefulness of the people of Flint and Detroit, Michigan,” the release states. Details have not been revealed, but it is a private event. Detroit is one of three cities that will host a “signature charity event” supporting the water crisis. The other two cities are Houston and Compton, California.

Beyonce’s foundation, BeyGOOD, orchestrated the event. It was founded in 2013 for the Mrs. Carter World Tour, and serves as the charity umbrella for all of the singer’s philanthropy, according to Billboard. The press release states Beyonce’s charity will link with fashion brand Gucci’s “Chime For Change” campaign – which their website says is dedicated to raising funds for women and girls worldwide – and Global Citizen – an organization working to end extreme poverty, according to the website – during the summer tour. Both will be present at the Detroit concert.

The singer’s work with Global Citizen isn’t new. In 2015, People reports she headlined the Global Citizen Festival. The yearly show supports the organization’s mission to end poverty by 2030. Also not new is her work with Chime for Change. Beyonce co-founded the campaign in 2013. According to the website, it has a long-term partnership with Global Citizen. The philanthropy of the new athletic fashion designer doesn’t end there. She worked with the Goodwill twice in the past four years. Three years ago, efforts were made to raise money and create more jobs.

Still independent.

We hope this story was worth your time. For over 14 years, Atlanta Black Star has stayed Black-owned and independently run. We didn't get here by waiting on ad budgets that were never built to prioritize us. Our readers did that.

Corporate support for Black media has always been thin. Outlets like ours get roughly 1% of the $170 billion spent on U.S. advertising each year, and that margin is shrinking further as advertisers walk back the DEI-linked commitments they made in 2020. That's the backdrop. It's not why we're asking.

The wider picture isn't any steadier. Newspaper ad revenue has fallen more than 80% since 2005, and local newsrooms are closing at a rate of roughly two a week nationwide. When outlets go under, it's rarely the ones built to center a Black perspective from the ground up that get to stick around.

We know a request for support isn't why you came here. But without readers choosing to fund this work directly, the depth of reporting we can do at home and abroad shrinks along with everyone else's. If you're not in a position to give, that doesn't change how much we value you as a reader.

If you are able to, a recurring contribution does more for us than a single one-time gift, because it lets us plan the next investigation instead of just the next invoice. It takes about 30 seconds, no long form, no account. Thank you for continuing to support independent journalism and freedom of the press.

Give once Give monthly Support another way

Related Stories

Back to top