Usher

The Washington, DC Martin Luther King, Jr. National Memorial Project Foundation, Inc. announced today that Usher, Ludacris, Wyclef Jean and Talib Kweli will join the all-star lineup for "Viacom Presents The Dream Concert" to be held on September 18, 2007 at Radio City Music Hall. The Foundation also announced that Halle Barry and Morgan Freeman have agreed to join the concert's Host Committee. The historic lineup will also feature Stevie Wonder, Aretha Franklin, Carlos Santana, John Legend, Bebe and Cece Winans, Jessye Norman, Kenny "Babyface" Edmonds, Robin Thicke, Joss Stone, Miri Ben-Ari and Garth Brooks. The event, co-chaired by Tommy Hilfiger, Russell Simmons, Joel Horowitz, Quincy Jones, David Stern and Edgar Bronfman, Jr., will benefit the building of the Martin Luther King, Jr. National Memorial in DC. "We are thrilled to have acclaimed hip hop artists Usher, Ludacris, Wyclef Jean and Talib Kweli for this historic New York event," said concert co-chairs Tommy Hilfiger and Russell Simmons. "Their participation will help capture the essence of Dr. King's lasting legacy by uniting musicians from all backgrounds and pairing together unique musical combinations rarely found on the same stage." Freeman and Berry join Muhammad Ali, Angela Bassett, Jamie Foxx, Whoopi Goldberg, Cuba Gooding, Jr., Michael Jordan, Magic Johnson, Kerry Washington, Al Roker, Alicia Keys, Ben Affleck, Mira Sorvino, Cedric the Entertainer, Shaquille O'Neal and former New York City Mayor David Dinkins as Host Committee members. The Memorial Foundation has already raised $82 million of the $100 million needed to complete and maintain the memorial, and this event will help secure the additional funds. Tickets for The Dream Concert are priced at $150, $250, $500 and $1,000 and are available through TicketMaster phones and outlets and at http://www.ticketmaster.com. A memorial honoring Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. will be built on the National Mall in Washington, D.C. The Memorial will be situated adjacent to the F.D.R. Memorial and in a direct line between the Lincoln and Jefferson Memorials. Congress passed Joint Resolutions in 1996 authorizing Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc. to establish a memorial honoring Dr. King to be built in Washington, DC. The Ceremonial Groundbreaking took place on November 13, 2006 and the Memorial is scheduled to be completed in 2009.