Cash Money owners Bryan “Birdman” Williams and Ronald “Slim” Williams are contributing cash money to New Orleans residents in the form of rent payments for the month of June, according to The Root.
The hip hop entrepreneurs have donated more than $225,000 to a nonprofit organization called Forward Together New Orleans (FTNO).
“Given the scale of COVID-19 and its far-reaching impacts on the City of
New Orleans, Forward Together New Orleans plans to immediately issue checks to the scattered sites to pay for June rent for those tenants who are in the public housing programs, excluding any monies already subsidized by the government and other organizations,” according to a press release received by The Root. “FTNO is The Mayor’s Fund which began as New Orleans Mayor LaToya Cantrell’s transition committee and now plans to thrive long past her tenure in office, a vehicle that offers nonprofit, partnership support to future New Orleans mayors.”“The legacy of Cash Money belongs to the city of New Orleans,” Birdman said. “There’s nothing more important to us than giving back to the brothers and sisters who live on those same streets we grew up on—from musicians to service workers to everyday working families. That’s what this label was always about.”
“New Orleans made us and is part of who we are,” Slim adds. “We are devastated that this pandemic is hitting our community there so hard and we are committed to doing what we can to help now and in the long term.”
“In years to come, when we look back on how our city came together to get through the coronavirus crisis, we will have no better example of leadership than the Williams brothers, these sons of New Orleans who make our city proud today,” said Mayor Cantrell. “No one should have to fear losing their home while trying to protect their health.”
Cash Money Records is responsible for the careers of artists like Lil Wayne, Drake, Nicki Minaj, and Tyga.