Hip Hop mogul Andre Young, better known by his stage name Dr. Dre, is pledging $10 million towards the construction of a performing arts center at Compton High School in California.
“My goal is to provide kids with the kind of tools and learning they deserve,” Dr. Dre said in a statement to the Los Angeles Times. “The performing arts center will be a place for young people to be creative in a way that will help further their education and positively define their future.”
Dr. Dre, a Compton native, is a rapper, record producer, entrepreneur and is the founder and current CEO of Aftermath Entertainment and Beats Electronics. He’s an original member of the hip group N.W.A, a group widely considered as one of the greatest and most influential groups in the history of hip-hop music.
The performing arts center, which is expected to open in 2020, will feature state-of-the-art equipment and technology, a digital media production facilities and a 1,200-seat theater. The Compton Unified School District, says Dr. Dre also plans to help raise additional funds for the new facility.
“The support that Dre has shown to Compton over the years is unwavering and we are so excited that we will now be home to one of the greatest performing arts centers in the country,” Satra Zurita, president of Compton Unified’s governing board of trustees, said.
Dr. Dre’s donation to the new Compton High School comes a few years after he promised he would donate the profits from his album Compton, towards a performing arts and entertainment facility, Rolling Stone reported. He announced his plan during an interview with Beats 1 Radio Zane Lowe in 2015, and also mentioned that he was working with Compton Mayor Aja Brown.
“I’ve been really trying to do something special for Compton and just couldn’t quite figure out what it was,” Dre said at the time. “She actually had this idea and she was already in the process of working on it. I said, ‘Boom, this is what we should do,” Rolling Stone Reported.
“This extraordinarily ambitious project will be a beacon for transformational change in Compton – giving our community an unparalleled access to opportunity and achievement,” Peter Micah Ali, vice chairman of the Compton Unified School District’s Board of Education, said. “Dr. Dre has stepped up and partnered with the school district to make this vision a reality.”
This is Dr. Dre’s second major contribution to Southern Califonia Education. In 2013, Dr. Dre along with his business partner Jimmy Iovine contributed $70 million to the University of Southern California, creating the USC Iovine and Young Academy.
“We are looking forward to blending both [Dre’s] vision and that of the district to provide opportunities for individuals to both explore and apply their creativity in the arts,” Darin Brawley, Compton Unified superintendent, said.
