Beyonce, Jay-Z crazy in love with Obama
Jay-Z and Beyonce Knowles are still in it to help US President Barack Obama win it in his second bid for the White House.
Beyonce made an online pitch on Obama's behalf, sending his supporters an email with an "amazing invitation" to meet with the musical duo and the president for an evening in New York City at an as-yet-undetermined date before Election Day on 6th November.
"I've had the honour of meeting President Obama and the First Lady a few times," Beyonce says in the promotional email, "and believe me, it's an opportunity you don't want to miss."
As with several previous Obama campaign sweepstakes involving famous figures from the entertainment realm, the contest makes room for a winner and a guest to join POTUS and the VIPs for the price of a small donation.
This time, however, some pre-election inflation has apparently jacked up the cost, with an entry-level contribution of US$25 (RM75) as opposed to the US$3 or US$5 base price requested for other recent events.
The pair are also hosting a numerically catchy US$40,000-a-head fund-raising dinner party at Jay-Z's 40/40 club in Manhattan on 18th September, according to the New York Post. But it's unclear from Beyonce's memo whether the civilian meet-and-greet will be part of that event.
Beyonce has made herself visible in this election season, making a video tribute to Michelle Obama posted on BarackObama.com in July and taking part in the First Lady's Let's Move! kid-targeted fitness campaign in May, among other high-profile appearances.
And after several rounds of star-powered fundraising, the Obama campaign appears to have the celebrity endorsement rigmarole down pat and isn't shy about linking their candidate's brand with Hollywood-level fame.
George Clooney, Harvey Weinstein, Anna Wintour, Sarah Jessica Parker, Michael Jordan, Gwen Stefani and Eva Longoria have all done their part to direct attention and funds to Obama's re-election effort, and with just under eight weeks to go, there's still plenty of time for that list to grow.
Source: Reuters
Published: 14th September 2012
