If he’s going to become a caricature of stony weirdness, he may as well help an entire nation’s children in the process: Rapper Snoop Lion (formerly Snoop Dogg) has partnered with Reed’s Ginger Brew and Causes.com to create “The Mind Gardens Project” in Jamaica, which aims to help feed children in the struggling country.
Snoop and John Paul Dejoria of Paul Mitchell and Patron Spirits have created The Mind Gardens Project, which will provide residents with the tools and resources needed to grow their own food, including fruits and vegetables.
After several recording-session visits to Jamaica, which also inspired his name change, Snoop decided to create The Mind Gardens Project. The program has already started working in Kingston, with locations in Trenchtown and Tivoli Gardens.
“When I went to Jamaica we took time to visit these communities in Kingston, and I was deeply affected by the poverty and lack of good food available to the children,” Snoop Lion said. “No child should go hungry. After all the inspiration Jamaica had provided me, I felt compelled to create a program to give back to the community.”
An awareness campaign is underway on Causes.com, which allows people to take The Mind Gardens Project pledge and learn more about developing out gardens for organic food growth in their own community.
“We’ve been looking for a way to give back to Jamaica,” added Chris Reed. “Nothing is more basic than food in helping people help themselves. Snoop helping to educate the world on how to eat better, and encouraging communities to grow their own organic food — this is very positive change. We are also excited about rolling out this project to many U.S. cities. My company has always tried to offer people better, healthier options when it comes to what they drink.”
Snoop also plans to bring the program home to the United States.
“This is just the start, we have some big plans to roll out Mind Gardens stateside in the year to come,” says Snoop Lion. “We can all do our part to help people eat healthier and live better. Bless up! Jah Rastafari!”
Jah Rastafari, indeed.
