Wiz Khalifa Auctions Clothes Off His Back For Little Kids Rock

By Etan Vlessing 1/16/20 | www.samaritanmag.com

Wiz Khalifa — photo credit: web site
Wiz Khalifa is raiding his clothes closet to support Little Kids Rock, a nonprofit looking to expand music education programs in public schools across the U.S. as they face cutbacks.  The American rapper and actor is offering fans the ability to purchase items from his personal collection via his Clothes Off My Back campaign, including tank tops, hoodies, jeans and hats.

In March, he’ll also offer personalized memorabilia he’s created, such as paintings, handwritten or drawn items, and other items connected to significant career milestones. They will be available either for direct purchase or auctioned.

He has set aside 60 pieces, according to the press release, and their availability will be announced on The Wiz Vault web site.

Khalifa will offer an unspecified donation from the sales to bring music education programs to the music star's hometown of Pittsburgh.

Little Kids Rock was launched in 1996 by elementary school teacher David Wish out of his frustration with funding for music education being cut at his school.  What started as an after-schools guitar program by Wish by 2002 grew to wider initiative supported by rock stars like Carlos Santana, John Lee Hooker and Bonnie Raitt and to date has helped around 850,000 young people learn to make music.

Little Kids Rock today is supported by thousands of teachers in kindergarten to grade 12 classes in 45 U.S. states, according to the non-profit's website.

"Using genres including rock, pop, Latin, and rap, our program empowers teachers to build music programs as diverse as the kids they serve. Our students see themselves reflected in their classes, which strengthens their connection to their school, their peers, and their community," the website explains.

Little Kids Rock founder Wish developed a "Music as a Second Language" teaching method that allows young people to play their favourite musical styles as they learn to improvise and pen original tunes.

The charity has also introduced a modern band classes program that features guitar, bass, keyboard, drums, vocals, technology and computers that allows young people to create music in a group setting. It also donates music instruments and curriculum tools as the number of school music programs shrinks.

As part of its own fundraising, the organization holds annual Little Kids Rock benefit concerts, the latest of which saw Khalifa in October 2019 honoured by guitar great Steve Miller.

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