Alicia Keys and Roc Nation gave a 12-year-old girl the surprise of her life by contributing to her cause. In an attempt to retain the performing arts program at her school in light of budget cuts that could force it to close permanently, Tennyson Artigliere, a seventh grader, created a GoFundMe page to raise $102,000.
When she learned about the girl’s campaign to save the Professional Performing Arts School in New York City, famed musician Keys — who also attended the school — decided to step in with her label and contribute $60,000
TMZ reported that Keys and Roc Nation’s donation increased the approximately $50,000 that the kids had already raised. Additionally, they have promised to assist in annual fundraising for the program until the city can provide the funding on its own.
Tennyson is overjoyed to have received celebrity assistance, especially from such a well-known alum as Keys. According to the publication, her classmates couldn’t believe it when she revealed that Keys would be pitching in to save their performing arts program.
The 12-year-old told ABC7, “I had no idea that it was going to be this big and blow up this huge.”
Besides Keys, notable alumni of the program include Jeremy Allen White, Claire Danes, Britney Spears, and Jesse Eisenberg, according to Vibe.
