Avicii Raises $1 Million to Feed Hungry Americans on 'House for Hunger' Tour

Posted on Jan 23rd 2012 5:00PM by Kia Makarechi
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Taylor Hill, Getty Images

In the middle of a trendy restaurant in midtown Manhattan, Avicii (aka Tim Bergling) is standing by two large round tables with his manager Arash Pournouri. In just a couple hours, hundreds of house fans at Lavo nightclub across the street will be jumping and screaming for the renowned Swedish DJ/producer.

But for now, the young man wearing a beanie and a gray hoodie goes surprisingly unrecognized in the cavernous main dining hall of Tao. It's all for the better, as Bergling and the venue's PR teams have gathered some friends and journalists for a hosted dinner for another reason: Bergling and Pournouri (who goes by Ash), are in New York for a stop on their House for Hunger Tour -- a string of gigs that will result in a $1 million donation to Feeding America.

Bergling told Spinner at the dinner that incorporating philanthropy into his career is always something he's wanted to do. "I just haven't been at the place where I've been able to until about the past half a year," he said. It's an interesting timeframe, but given that the 22-year-old has only been touring for two years, half-years are significant.

Pournouri also said it was something he had been thinking about for a long time. "We've been approached throughout our whole major career, as soon as we got in the spotlight. People have been asking us to do charity events and do gigs for them," he said. "But I always felt -- whether they were small things or a bit bigger -- in every instance, I felt out of control. I didn't know where the money was really going to or who we were associating ourselves with."

"We're in a wonderful position where we can influence people everywhere," Pournouri added. "Not only fans but people in the industry and other DJ's."

They chose America as the first stop, but the duo hopes to take House for Hunger around the world. Bergling mentioned an interest in touring Africa and hoped that other DJ's would come on board.

Bergling decided to start the tour in the States for two reasons. "It's a country that has given me --personally -- so much," he said. "Also, I had no idea how big the hunger problem was in America. When I heard the numbers I was just baffled and said, 'We have to do this.'"

In quotes on the tour's website, Pournouri expressed a similar shock that "nearly 49 million Americans, including more than 16 million children, do not have access to healthy, nutritious food on a regular basis."

"I've always considered hunger a third-world problem," Bergling wrote on the site, "and I would have never guessed it being a problem of such magnitude in a country like America where, for the past year and a half, I've been spending more time in than I have at home."

It has of course been a whirlwind for Avicii, whose second New Year's eve gig was touted by event organizers as the biggest New Year's party in Manhattan's history (the Pier 94 show drew over 10,000 revelers).

The shows have taken place at everywhere from convention centers (Phoenix) to colleges (Dartmouth) and from nightclubs like Lavo to traditional concert venues like the Austin Music Hall in Texas. So far, Bergling has played nearly every day in January -- 26 gigs in as many days.

"The vibes are different as well [at the House for Hunger shows], because it's not selfish," Bergling said. "People know that it's for charity and they know they're helping a good cause."

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