Celebs and Corporations That Are Donating Millions to COVID-19 Relief

Rihanna, Lady Gaga, Oprah, Steph and Ayesha Curry, Angelina Jolie, Kylie Jenner, and Leonardo DiCaprio are among the celebrities who have donated millions to help those with various needs during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Curated by Lady Gaga and produced by Global Citizen the “One World: Together at Home” virtual concert was organized to raise funds amid the coronavirus pandemic. The eight-hour event aired live across 20 networks on Saturday and was viewed by more than 20 million people. It was touted as the largest virtual gathering of major artists and influencers since Live Aid in 1985.

The concert ended with a finale collaboration that include Celine Dion, Lady Gaga, Lang Lang, Andrea Bocelli and John Legend performing Dion and Bocelli’s 1999 hit duet “The Prayer.” The song went on to receive an Academy Award for best original song in 1999, and won the Grammy Award for best pop collaboration with vocals in 2000. Ultimately, the event is said to have raised $127 million to fight against the pandemic

(L to R clockwise) Andrea Bocelli, Celine Dion, Lady Gaga, and Lang Lang perform “The Prayer” during One World: Together at Home on April 18, 2020.

$127.9 million for COVID-19 relief.

That is the power and impact of One World: #TogetherAtHome.

Thank you @ladygaga for helping @GlblCtzn create this historic global broadcasting event.

To everyone around the world: Stay strong, stay safe, we will be together in person soon. pic.twitter.com/QudE6j7reF

— Global Citizen (@GlblCtzn) April 19, 2020

Like these celebrities, corporate heads are also raising money and providing services to support frontline workers and needy families during the pandemic. CEO Leon Black and his family are committing $20 million, which includes an initial plan to match any additional donation up to $10 million.  Black, who is chairman and CEO of Apollo Global Management,  and CEO of Aramark John Zillmer made this announcement on CNBC’s “Closing Bell” on Monday, April 13th.

Calling it a “very important initiative,” Black explained, “It started out, really, over the last two and a half weeks, when my wife, Deborah, and I were looking to do something for the frontline health care workers who were doing such amazing, incredible service under dangerous conditions across all five boroughs in New York City. We’re New Yorkers. We see what’s happening. We’re born and raised here. And we’re just in awe of the incredible heroic health care professionals putting their own health on the line to care for others during this pandemic.”

Apollo Global Management CEO Leon Black and wife, Deborah

Black said a mutual friend introduced him to Zillmer at Aramark and suggested they team up to help health care workers. “The Red Cross also teamed up us to help with direct distribution at the hospital sites to workers, while ensuring proper social distancing,” he added.

Aramark is the largest U.S.-based provider of food and facility services, and the company recently announced that it is converting some of its manufacturing facilities on the uniform side to manufacture personal protection equipment (PPE) for both the health care and food service industries. “We’ve got a long history of addressing urgent needs, supporting others in times of crisis – from people at the Astrodome during Hurricane Katrina, to the Chilean miners trapped deep underground,” said Zilmer.

Aramark CEO John Zillmer

Although Zillmer admits that Aramarks’s traditional dining, campus, and sports and entertainment services have been “significantly impacted” by pandemic closures, he said the company is still operating in health care and K-12 services.  “We’re serving over 700,000 meals a day on a free and reduced-base to school districts across the country, with over a quarter of a million a day in the city of Chicago. We’re also providing facility services to many other companies that need deep cleaning, hygiene services, as the businesses continue to operate, as you would imagine, at full tilt.”