Rapper Kanye West and MTV veejay Sway Calloway will team up to give
deserving veteran’s a homecoming they won’t soon forget as part of
MTV News‘ special Choose or Lose & Kanye West Present:
Homecoming.
Kanye West and Sway will make surprise visits to the homes of three
returning Iraqi War veterans to hear about their experiences in Iraq.
“There
are hundreds of veterans out there who are falling through the cracks.
They make the ultimate sacrifices for us by laying down their lives,
but it seems like a lot of them just get forgotten about,” Kanye West
told MTV. “I know my music inspires and helps a lot of people, but you
can always do more. I teamed up with MTV and took the opportunity to
share the spotlight with these veterans and hear their stories. I went
to their homes to listen and get their firsthand experiences. I wanted
to hear their stories.”
On behalf of MTV and the Dr. Donda West Foundation, Sway and Kanye
West will be surprising the veterans with various gifts including money
for rent, tuition, and debt assistance.
“The stories of the
veterans from the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan are important and worth
telling,” Dave Sirulnick, Executive Vice President for MTV News and
Production, said in a statement. “In conversations with veterans over
the last year, it became clear that Kanye‘s music is used by soldiers
in Iraq as a way of connecting to home. Once these veterans return
home, their stories are so moving that you can’t help but want to do
the right thing and help them out.”
“Homecoming” will air on MTV on July 28 at 10 p.m. ET.