Jon Bon Jovi Takes United We Serve on Tour

Rocker, Philanthropist Is First to Take President's Call to Service to Concert Venues Across the Country

WASHINGTON, March 3 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Jon Bon Jovi, in collaboration with the Corporation for National and Community Service, will be the first artist to take President Obama's United We Serve initiative to a mass audience by bringing the message of service out on the road and engaging millions of fans on the band's "The Circle World Tour."

On Thursday, March 4 at the Staples Center, Bon Jovi will debut a concert video before a sold-out arena. In the video, which will be shown at each venue on the US-leg of the tour, Bon Jovi makes a call to service to millions of fans. Bon Jovi also headlined a 60-second television PSA that includes images of President and First Lady Michelle Obama serving and will be distributed nationally to broadcast stations and used in online promotions. Click here to view and download the video and PSA.

"Just as Jon Bon Jovi's music moves millions around the world, his dedication to service will inspire even more to make a difference in their own communities," said Patrick Corvington, the Corporation's Chief Executive Officer. "This partnership is an amazing opportunity to encourage people from every corner of this country to take action and do their part to help those in need."

Bon Jovi, a longtime service advocate and philanthropist, calls on Americans in the concert video and PSA to use their energy and passion to help tackle our nation's challenges. As an individual who focuses his efforts on issues surrounding homelessness, Bon Jovi's highlights what he calls the "power of we." The video and PSA intersperse music from some of Bon Jovi's hit songs with a direct call to service. "The reality is – we're all in this together. It's time for you to raise your hand, go to Serve.gov and get involved in something you believe in."

This is the first-ever collaboration of this scale and magnitude between the Corporation, the federal agency that leads the nation's service sector, and a musical artist. The video and PSA featuring Bon Jovi are part of the Corporation's broader campaign to encourage more Americans to volunteer through the United We Serve initiative. At the Corporation's 2009 National Conference on Volunteering and Service, Bon Jovi and First Lady Michelle Obama launched the initiative with the Entertainment Industry Foundation before the largest gathering of volunteer and service leaders from nonprofit, government and corporate sectors.

In addition to the concert video, local volunteers with non-profit organizations and members of the Corporation's service programs will distribute information about the United We Serve initiative and Bon Jovi's Soul Foundation at booths inside concert venues in select cities. The volunteers will discuss how concertgoers can engage in service and find volunteer opportunities in their local community by visiting Serve.gov.

President Obama has made service a central cause of his administration. Since calling on Americans to serve in his inaugural address, the momentum for service has soared and support for the Corporation's service programs has skyrocketed – more than five million Americans volunteered with the Corporation in 2009, a 25 percent increase over the previous year. The United We Serve initiative challenges all Americans to help lay a new foundation for growth by engaging in sustained, meaningful community service to help meet our national priorities. The initiative has successfully bolstered civic engagement nationwide, helped to better our communities in priority issue areas, and leveraged partnerships with non-profits, U.S. corporations, and celebrities to foster a greater sense of purpose among Americans through service.

The Corporation for National and Community Service:

The Corporation for National and Community Service is a federal agency that engages more than five million Americans in service through its Senior Corps, AmeriCorps, and Learn and Serve America programs, and leads President Obama's national call to service initiative, United We Serve. For more information, visit NationalService.gov.

Jon Bon Jovi & The Jon Bon Jovi Soul Foundation:

Musically and philanthropically, Jon Bon Jovi's work honors the spirit of America and salutes the principles that define our nation. Self-reliance, optimism, and community are key concepts he refers to, not just in his music, but also in his charitable efforts. These common threads have resulted in millions of dollars raised while bringing heightened awareness to the issues that adversely impact humanity. Jon's belief in "the power of we" has led to the creation of many strategic partnerships and funding of programs supportive of innovative community efforts to break the cycle of poverty and homelessness.

The Jon Bon Jovi Soul Foundation is a non-profit organization formed in 2006 and dedicated to bringing about positive change and helping the lives of those in need "one Soul at a time." The Soul Foundation exists to combat issues that force families and individuals into economic despair. The foundation's goal of recognizing and maximizing the human potential of those affected by poverty and homelessness is met through the funding of programs and creation of partnerships that provide for permanent, affordable housing with supportive services and job training programs as well as, most recently, nutritious living habits.

To date Jon Bon Jovi and the Soul Foundation have provided funding to projects that have created more than 220 units of affordable housing for low-income individuals and families.

Musically, Bon Jovi has set the bar for more than two decades as one of the most successful rock bands in the world. Globally, they have sold more than 120 million albums and performed more than 2,600 concerts in over 50 countries for more than 34 million fans. The band's 2005 album, Have a Nice Day, featured the Grammy Award-winning song, "Who Says You Can't Go Home," and fueled one of the top-selling tours of 2005, according to Billboard Magazine. Bon Jovi's most recent album, The Circle, debuted at No. 1 in the US and around the world. Beginning with the band's North American tour launch on February 19, 2010 in Seattle, WA, Bon Jovi will spend much of the next two years on the road, performing 135 shows in 30 countries. Bon Jovi will draw fans around the world into The Circle, with a residency at London's O2 Arena in June 2010 before returning to America in the fall for an additional nationwide leg, and further dates well into 2011.

SOURCE Corporation for National and Community Service