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Media Contact:
4Sight Media Relations Jackie O. Asare NYC (212)730-1177 - ATL (404)975-0888 Email: Jackieo@4sightmedia.com
Please contact 4Sight Media for hi-resolution images and B-Roll from the event.
ENCOURAGING OUR YOUNG PEOPLE TO STAY IN SCHOOL.
NEW YORK, NY October 22, 2007 – The Entertainers 4 Education 2007 Stay In School Concert held at The Manhattan Center in New York City on October 17th was a huge success. Over 2,000 students from New York high-school stood on line that wrapped around the corner to see their favorite artists and for one message, STAY IN SCHOOL!!! On hand for the event which was co-presented by HOT 97 and Catapult Online was music icon Rev. Joseph Simmons aka Rev. Run, America’s Next Top Model Winner and LOT 29 celebrity spokesmodel, Jaslene Gonzalez, Lil Mama, Remy Ma, Juelz Santana, Darnell of MTV Sweet 16, Jim Jones, New York Knicks Legend John Starks, Papoose, hosted by DJ Cipha Sounds. LOT 29 Presented a fashion show previewing their Fall collection and donation of fashion items. of their Fall line. Product donations came from White Castle, Dominoes Pizza, Vitamin Water, Register To Vote, with VIP catering provided by Amy Ruth’s Restaurant.
There were several highlights for the evening:
Rev. Run who received an image award for using his celebrity status to promote positive images to young people. He took some time on-stage to share his ideals about the importance of education and family encouraging pre-teen and teen to be the best they can be.
The second honoree of the evening was Juelz Santana who was presented an award by Entertainment 4 Education (E4EA) for his support from their inception. “Juelz had been our #1 supporter from day one,” explained Tonya Lewis, co-founder and Executive Director of Entertainers 4 Education Alliance. “Juelz has appeared at more events with us than any other artist so we wanted to recognize him for consistently helping us make a different in the lives of our students.
America’s Next Top Model winner, Jaslene Gonzales, shared a message that life is more than being and beautiful encouraging audience members to be fabulous and smart. A spokesmodel for LOT 29, she took the stage with LOT 29 models to present Fall fashions. There was no catwalk tonight; Jaslene Gonzales took a detour from the stage leading the models through the crowd for a fashion close-ups.
NY Knicks, John Starks, talked about his life growing up without much direction and finding the will inside himself to go from working in a grocery store bagging groceries to becoming an NBA legend.
Performance highlights included Young B & Web Starr, who had the whole audience doing their now infamous “Chicken Noodle Soup” dance.
Papoose who through his “Alphabetical Slaughter” demonstrated the importance of vocabulary in lyricism to an emcee.
Lil Mama, a graduate of Edward R Murrow HS in NYC gave an electrifying performance and talked about the balancing the demands of school with wanting to be a hip-hop artist. She emphasized that although music is her passion, finishing school was her first priority.
Lil Mo performed and discussed her renewed understanding of the importance of education as a mother.
Always a crowd favorite, Jim Jones, also had a strong message for the kids about staying in school.
A surprise appearance for the audience came from Remy Ma. Although Remy has been accused of some very serious allegations, she showed up to support the message of E4EA as she’s done in the past. Before her performance, Tonya Lewis founder of E4EA sat down with Remy for a one-on-one candid interview where she addressed a few things regarding her recent allegations.
E4EA: Remy you have been in the news for some very serious allegations why did you come here to the 2007 Stay in School Concert.
Remy: I can't speak on the current legal situation but I what can say is that being a celebrity and especially a rapper, you are targeted and any situations you encounter are magnified to the highest degree. I came here today because I've been a supporter of the Entertainment 4 Education and E.A.R.S. Foundation for a couple of years now and I wanted to support the message of this event. I've been dragged through the mud so much by the media lately that I want all my young people to know I do stand for positive change and I want to use my celebrity to encourage kids to stay in school and get an education. New York City has one of the highest drop-out rates in the country and that needs to change so if I can use my influence to encourage kids to stay in school that's what I want to do and that's why I'm here.
E4EA: What have you learned from this experience?
Remy: You have to choose your company carefully and to limit the amount of people in my circle. I have learned to be careful about who I call my friends. I’m also learning resilience that everything is a learning experience.
E4EA: What would you like our young people to know?
To stay in school and be educated, be wise and make wise choices because the choices you make from the smallest things to the biggest will affect your life. Finally, I want everyone to know I am not perfect. I’m human just like you and I still have a lot to learn about myself, but I am working hard to be the best I can be. I want all of my young fans to know I appreciate the support and the love every email or blog has been positive and I thank you all. I appreciate you for having me.
For more information about E4EA, please visit www.e4ea.org, (718)385-3133
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