Today's Blind Items - Here Comes Santa - Kindness

Even though it is Christmas Eve, I really hadn't planned on putting a Kindness item here. Then, when recording a podcast episode with Tricia13 this morning, we started talking about music and groups and it made me think of someone that I haven't thought about in a long time. Back in the day he was A+ list. A singer. He came out of the gate so fast and was everywhere. For several years it felt like every song he sang went to the top of the charts. I'm still surprised he has never won a Grammy. He has won a lot of other awards. He kind of screwed himself over because of the way he fought the music industry. He crashed and burned when he said the things he did and even though he did and can still put out music, every radio station is scared to play him because the record companies don't want him played. If a station does play him, they risk losing out on access to singers on those labels.

After the labels basically blacklisted the guy, you would think he would be bitter. I never got that from him at all. A few years ago I was out his way in the late spring. We were going to meet for lunch and he told me to meet him and we could go on his rounds together. I had no idea what he meant, but was game for anything. It turns out that once a month from January to October he spends a week of his time going from shelter to shelter to children's hospitals to Boys & Girls clubs and dropping off all kinds of needed materials that he has either bought or arranged to have donated. He literally spends 60-70 hours during that week driving from place to place bringing them much needed items. He spends the other three weeks a month making calls and getting the stuff donated and going out and buying things himself. I asked him why he skipped it in November and December and he said that is when the rest of the population of the city took over. He said he was needed the rest of the year when people would suddenly forget these services and organizations existed. They don't just need your help in the holidays. He said that he is so grateful to have made as much money as he had so he could do this for everyone in the city he loves. The people I saw that day love him right back.