Hip-Hop Mogul Dr. Dre To Donate Album Royalties To Compton Youth Center
LOS ANGELES (CBSLA.com) — One of hip-hop's biggest names is making a very big donation.
Pioneering rapper and producer Andre Young, known more commonly as Dr. Dre, will donate all of his artist royalties earned from his new album "Compton" to help fund a new performing arts and entertainment facility in the city behind the album's title.
Young first announced the move in an interview with Rolling Stone magazine, in which he revealed the idea to help his hometown came to him as he prepared to release the album, which he says is intended to accompany the release of the NWA biopic "Straight Outta Compton", due to be released next Friday.
With 16 new songs and cameos by Eminem, Kendrick Lamar, Ice Cube, Snoop Dogg, and others, Young officially released "Compton" on Friday after offering a sneak preview of the album on Apple Music Thursday night.
He told Rolling Stone his team has been coordinating with Compton Mayor Aja Brown to "do something special" for the city.
"She actually had this idea and she was already in the process of working on it," Young told Rolling Stone. "I said, 'Boom, this is what we should do.'"
Brown took to Twitter to celebrate the announcement and recognize Young for his generous contribution to the city.
Big TY to @drdre for his love +generosity for #Compton youth! Looking forward 2 bldg a Youth Performing Arts Ctr! #ComptonUP @MRTempower
— Aja Brown (@AjaLBrown) August 6, 2015
The mayor also released a longer statement, which read in part: "I'm honored that Mr. Young has decided to make a significant investment in his community. He clearly has a heart for Compton, especially our youth.
"I believe this performing arts center will provide a pathway for creative expression, exposure and training to the myriad of industries that support arts, entertainment and technology-while providing a much-needed safe haven for our youth."
It's not the first act of philanthropy from Young: he and record producer Jimmy Iovine donated $70 million to the University of Southern California in 2013 to create their very own undergraduate academy geared toward helping students interested in marketing, business entrepreneurship, computer science, engineering, audio and visual design and the arts.