NEW YORK – Wyclef Jean, the
Grammy Award-winning musician, producer, and
humanitarian, will join Fireman Capital
Partners Chairman and former Reebok
CEO Paul Fireman, Dan Fireman,
Shaquille O’Neal, Eli Manning,
Michael Strahan, Rick Fox,
and other stars from music, sports, and
business to honor Lisa Ellis of
Fireman Capital Partners and Carnival
House Recordings.
Ms. Ellis will receive the 2009 Phoenix Rising Award, to be presented
by Phoenix House on March 30th, 2009.
The annual Phoenix Rising Award
Dinner will be held at The Plaza in New York to raise money for Phoenix House, one
of the world’s leading non-profit drug and
alcohol addiction, prevention, and treatment
organizations. Past recipients include
Russell Simmons, hip-hop artist and
business mogul, and Jeff Zucker,
President and CEO of NBC Universal.
“Lisa Ellis is one of the most influential
women in the music industry, and she has
become a staunch advocate of Phoenix House
and our programs,” says Howard P.
Meitiner, Phoenix House President and
CEO. “The arts, entertainment, and fashion
industries are vitally important to
encourage positive and responsible behavior
among young people, and that is why we
established this award.”
Wyclef
Jean
adds, “Jerry
‘Wonda’ Duplessis and I are excited to be
supporting our partner in Carnival House,
the great Lisa Ellis. Phoenix House is an
incredible organization helping people
change their lives. Lisa, Jerry, and I were
able to have one of our new artists, Niia,
debut at a Phoenix House event in October.
We look forward to Carnival House continuing
to not only entertain, but support Phoenix
House while doing so!”
Ms. Ellis helped develop the careers
of Prince, Beyoncé, The Fugees, Lauryn Hill,
Wyclef Jean, John Legend, Nas, Destiny’s
Child, Maxwell, Terrence Howard, and many
others in her roles as Executive Vice
President of Sony Music Label Group and
President of Sony Urban Music. She and
Wyclef Jean founded Carnival House to
develop new music, publishing, and film
projects. Ms. Ellis is also a Founding
Operating Partner of Fireman Capital
Partners.
Miri Ben-Ari,
the Israeli-born,
classically-trained “Hip-Hop Violinist” and
Grammy Award-winning songwriter will perform
at the dinner, along with a special acoustic
performance by Wyclef Jean and a
taped tribute from Shaquille O’Neal.
Ms. Ben-Ari’s collaborations with artists
such as John Legend, Jay-Z, Kanye West, and
Wyclef Jean have helped sell millions of
records.
Dinner Chairs are Paul Fireman,
Chairman, and Dan Fireman, Managing
Partner of Fireman Capital Partners.
Co-Chairs are Rose Marie Bravo,
former CEO of Burberry; Wyclef Jean,
musician; Eli Manning, 2008 Super
Bowl MVP and New York Giants Quarterback;
Shaquille O’Neal, NBA “All-Star” Center
for the Phoenix Suns, rapper, and actor;
Richard Plepler, Co-President of HBO;
Jeff Ross, Executive Producer of The
Tonight Show with Conan O’Brien;
and Andrew M. Spellman, Partner of
Fireman Capital Partners.
Other members of the Host Committee include
Sarah Chapman, Rick Fox,
Cristie Kerr and Erik Stevens,
John Legend, David Lipman,
Will McDonough, Shaun O’Hara,
Shari Redstone, Aaron Sells,
Robert Souza, Michael Strahan,
Wes Welker, Gus Williams, and
Josh Zeide.
Phoenix House
is one of the nation’s leading non-profit
substance abuse prevention and treatment
service organizations, serving close to
7,500 men, women (including women with
children), and teens each day at more than
152 drug and alcohol treatment and
prevention programs in 10 states –
California, Connecticut, Florida, Maine,
Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York,
Rhode Island, Texas, and Vermont. For
information visit
http://www.phoenixhouse.org/.
For information on ticket sales, please
contact Stacy Johnson at 212-997-0100.