Justin Bieber, pictured with Starship patient Makenzie
Perry, is helping to promote the hospital's festive-season
album.
A secretly filmed advertisement featuring teenage
heart-throb and pop phenomenon Justin Bieber will air on local
TV screens this month in support of the Starship children's
hospital.
The 18-year-old Bieber avoided throngs of screaming teenage
girls during his whirlwind three-day visit to Auckland in
July when he visited the hospital and also recorded the ad
promoting the release of the Starship Christmas album for
2012.
Bieber fever caused havoc when he visited New Zealand two
years ago so the young star tried to keep his visit to the
hospital - his first anywhere in the world - secret to avoid
any mayhem.
He didn't have too much luck, however.
"We were speaking in code, that kind of thing, because of
Facebook and Twitter and even the kids at the hospital didn't
know he was going to see them," said music industry veteran
Paul Ellis.
"But as it would happen he tweeted to his 24 million
followers on Twitter that he was off to Starship hospital for
a visit so by the time he drove from the hotel to the loading
bay at the hospital, his fans were already starting to
gather."
Ranked the world's third-most-influential celebrity in 2012
by Forbes magazine and with 15 million album sales to date,
Bieber sings Mistletoe on the album, which Ellis said was a
"stonking good Christmas CD".
He is joined by other artists including Queen, Lady Gaga,
Elton John, Ronan Keating, Hayley Westenra, Michael Jackson,
Maroon 5, Adeaze, the Jackson Five, Tiki Taane, OneRepublic
and Lucy Lawless - all of whom have provided their recordings
royalty-free to support the children's hospital.
Ellis said having Bieber's support and him leading the
television campaign to promote the album was "truly
incredible".
"I have been in this business for 30 years and you don't get
artists just fronting up for a cause ... they don't endorse
on a regular basis - they endorse things for money," Ellis
said.
"But he's standing up for a charity, which is fantastic."
The album will be available on CD nationwide from November 19
through The Warehouse stores for $16, supporting music
retailers and for download from www.universalmusic. com.
Orders for the album can be made at www.starship.org.nz/music.
- James Ihaka, NZ Herald
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