Big Sean Invests In Boys & Girls Club Youth Entrepreneurship Program

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Rapper Big Sean has been a fierce advocate for youth empowerment and he’s pushing his efforts to inspire youngsters to follow their dreams forward. The music artist—whose real name is Sean Anderson—has invested in a new workforce and entrepreneurship program at the Boys & Girls Clubs of Southeastern Michigan.

The initiative, dubbed The Industry Club, was created to introduce Detroit teenagers to an array of career paths that sit at the intersection of technology, sports and entertainment. As part of the immersive program, nearly 200 teenagers will learn about the different facets of these industries while earning money for their participation. The Boys & Girls Clubs of Southeastern Michigan is the first chapter to lead a sports and entertainment entrepreneurship-focused program. The program supports BGCSM’s greater mission of using economic mobility to eradicate poverty.

“We’re excited to offer the sports and entertainment industry club which will be a game changer for the youth of metro Detroit,” BGCSM President and CEO Shawn H. Wilson said in a statement. “Together with our dynamic industry partners we will have a collective impact which will help break the poverty cycle for many of the youth we serve.” The Sean Anderson Foundation, the Blevins Charitable Fund, the Detroit Pistons, the Children’s Foundation, the Wayne County Commission and the Detroit Red Wings have collectively invested $1.5 million into the program. Efforts like the one being led by BGCSM are needed. Studies show there is a high percentage of disconnected youth in Detroit.

This isn’t the first time Anderson has stepped up in a major way for the Boys & Girls Club. Two years ago, he opened a production studio at the Dick & Sandy Dauch Boys & Girls Club as a space for youth who want to launch careers in the arts to work on their craft. “I think it can save somebody’s life, if they have somewhere to go. I think there are going to be a lot more millionaires and billionaires from Detroit, and I think the Boys & Girls Club is going to have something to do with that,” he said.

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