SFTC: TORONTO POLICE ENLISTS LOCAL RAPPERS TO RECORD AN ANTI-VIOLENCE POLICE OFFICER PROGRAM PSA.

Photos courtesy of Toronto Police service

The Toronto Sun's Crime Reporter Chris Doucette spotlights a story unheard of. Rappers teaming up with local police to foster a better community. The Toronto Anti－Violence Intervention Strategy is a Ministry of Community Safety and Correctional Services provincially funded initiative, dedicated to creating and maintaining sustainable, safe neighbourhoods. TAVIS initiatives are operating in all of the 17 Toronto police Divisions and are supported by every unit in the Service.

The key message for this TAVIS PSA is that TAVIS officers are there to help the community, not harass them. TAVIS officers listen and talk with community members and the goal is to work together and basically the two parts to TAVIS is community building and enforcement.

One by one, Gilly Gadan, Linkx, NES, Berg Beauge, Jay Stackz, David a.k.a. D, and Kadar Star busted rhymes for TAVIS, urging people to “trust” and “help” police.“I couldn’t believe the things they were saying,” Mills said excitedly. “I was just blown away!”He believes the messages were more powerful than any ad police could have produced on their own. The rappers’ contributions will be woven together and cut down to two 30-second spots, slated to air May 31 on Z103.5 and FLOW 93.5.But Mills was so impressed, he plans to post them in their entirety on youtube.com/torontopolice. While getting the rappers to say “all the right things” was easy, Mills said convincing them to work with cops may have been impossible if not for the help of crime victim advocate Kemi Omololu-Olunloyo.

She put the call out for rappers on her highly popular music blog, Hip-Hossip, and had 700 responses. But that number dwindled to just a handful when she explained cops were involved.“I screened them to be sure they were sincere,” she said. “I didn’t want anyone who was only doing it just to boost their career.” However, as a Canadian correspondent on a new hip-hop show called The Deal on BET, she plans to reward the volunteers by giving them some exposure.Omololu-Olunloyo said the young men who participated have had trouble with the law to varying degrees, but she believes that gives them more credibility with the youth.

“These are all positive guys who have turned their lives around,” Omololu-Olunloyo said.She actually helped mentor one of the rappers, Gilly Gaden, after meeting him “on the block” near Jane St. and Wilson Ave.“I was living the fast life, selling drugs and pimpin’,” he explained. “But music changed my life.”

You must read the whole story here and watch the video

It is always a pleasure helping the Toronto Police find positive role models out there.

ROLE MODEL RAPPER BERG BEAUGE (KARL ANTHONY ROSIER) ON CP24.

Berg was one of the rappers that took part in the recording the TAVIS PSA.

SFTC ROLE MODEL: TORONTO RAPPER BERG BAUGE APPEARS TONITE ON CP24 CABLE CHANNEL ON HIS NEW MISSION.

Photos courtesy of Berg Bauge

Earlier this week, when I made a casting call for Toronto Rappers to stand up for the local police and make a difference for the kids, it was like a joke to some MC's out there? What? "Toronto Police needing us to record their Public service announcements?" That's what I heard. One rapper moved me out of the 6 that volunteered their time. Below is his e-mail....

"Hey Kemi, I have noticed the initiative you have taken with the Tavis program. I would also like to give back to the community. A year ago I was released from the penetentiary after 25 months of incarceration. During my time there I completed my high school and worked on a Business Diploma through correspondence at Northern College. When I was released I was placed in a shelter at Queen and Sherbourne even though I was convicted of drug trafficking. I never let that bother me. I searched for jobs relentlessly and found one at a call center. I worked there until last week. I was just hired for a tech support position for $35,500 a year plus benefits. I guess I'm saying anything is possible. My music is my life and now I can invest in myself. More importantly I will be having my son live with me. I feel that if I can change so can others who really want to change.
Thank you for your time Kemi."

Regards
Berg
5/17/2010

Berg Bauge is working on a new mixtape and I am gonna feature him on BET's "The Deal" This is what community is about and Hip-Hop is about the community. Pronounced Beu-jay, he as been spotted by the entire media as a role model for the rest of us. All my 6 rappers will be going on a TAVIS media tour soon. I am working on it. If they can make a difference, you can too. Bauge will be on Stephen LeDrew's show tonite LIVE on Cable Pulse channel CP24 in Toronto and the GTA. A TAVIS?Toronto Crime Stoppers officer will be there on the show too. They are the guests. Watch and tape it!! 9PM LIVE!!!!!!!!!!

ABOUT STEPHEN LEDREW

Stephen LeDrew joined CP24 after appearing on the channel to offer political analysis on various issues. He now co-hosts CP24 Live at Noon and appears regularly as a Political Analyst. He first got involved in politics when he was 16. While riding his bike along Danforth Ave., a woman asked LeDrew to help out with the Trudeau election campaign. Nearly 40 years later, he says he hasn't looked back.

LeDrew's insight helps viewers understand the political issues at City Hall in Toronto, Parliament Hill in Ottawa or the Provincial Legislature at Queen's Park. CP24's Political Analyst is also a Toronto lawyer specializing in public policy issues at all levels of government, so he knows his way around the political landscape.

Known for his bow ties (he has not worn a "normal" tie in nearly 30 years), LeDrew was elected president of the Liberal Party of Canada in 1998 and again in 2000, serving as party president for almost six years until November 2003. He is also past president of the National Club in Toronto.

"Berg Beauge is THE dude to watch! He's turned his life around and is rising and shining like few people I've ever known! Support the man."....Rapper Mindbender (Addie Stewart Music Reporter)

AWESOME SFTC: HIPHOSSIP IN THE COMMUNITY: WE TEAMED LOCAL TORONTO RAPPERS WHO HAVE TURNED THEIR LIVES AROUND WITH TORONTO POLICE TO RECORD A PSA.

CRIME VICTIM ADVOCATE KEMI OMOLOLU-OLUNLOYO AND EDITOR OF HIPHOSSIP MUSIC BLOG TEAM UP TORONTO RAPPERS TO RECORD PSA'S FOR TORONTO POLICE'S TAVIS SAFE NEIGHBORHOODS INITIATIVE

Crime victim advocate, Publicist and Music Journalist Kemi Omololu-Olunloyo has paired up local rappers with the Toronto police to record public service announcements for the ongoing TAVIS initiative. She has been hosting free press conferences for families of crime victims to make appeals to the public for tips on their homicide cases and has always been a strong supporter of Toronto Crime Stoppers and "Prevention" of crime in youth.

The Toronto Anti－Violence Intervention Strategy is a Ministry of Community Safety and Correctional Services provincially funded initiative, dedicated to creating and maintaining sustainable, safe neighbourhoods. TAVIS initiatives are operating in all of the 17 Toronto police Divisions and are supported by every unit in the Service.

The key message for this TAVIS PSA is that TAVIS officers are there to help the community, not harass them. TAVIS officers listen and talk with community members and the goal is to work together and basically the two parts to TAVIS is community building and enforcement.

Kemi whose music and PR blog HipHossip.com and Fanada.ca features You Tube videos of appeals from crime victims teamed up five local Toronto rappers from all corners of the city, ethnic groups and nationalities for this project. The Rappers Nes (Noel Esso), Berg Bauge (Tony Rosier), Gilly Gadan (Gilliano Joseph), Kadar Star (Kadar Hall) and Jay Stacks.

Any media wishing to interview this team of talented musicians on why they chose to be part of this initiative, talk about their own past run-ins with the law and how they are planning to change other lives and motivate youth in the community and getting the public to support TAVIS should contact me on an interview location.

HipHossip has just teamed up in a brand partnership with US network Black Entertainment television (BET) on a new hip-hop show "The Deal." As a Canadian partner and Correspondent, we hope to expose the world to our breed of positive rappers in the community.