Steven Tyler
Aerosmith singer Steven Tyler is to help abused and neglected girls. Tyler has launched Janie’s Fund – named after the 1989 Aerosmith song Janie’s Got a Gun, about child abuse and incest – to support victims.
“As a father and grandfather, I want to focus my energy on things that really matter and leave behind something else in this crazy world along with my music,” Tyler said. “I am starting Janie’s Fund to give a voice to the millions of victims who haven’t had one and encourage everyone to join me on this mission.”
“An entire community was built around this song’s message,” Tyler wrote on the Janie’s Fund website. “Over the years, I’ve been overwhelmed by the thousands of fans who have sent me letters, telling me their stories and how Janie’s Got a Gun affected and inspired them.
The fund has been launched as crowdfunded affair, with Tyler launching a Prizeo page offering rewards for donors. Fort $5 you get entered into a draw for The Ultimate VIP Rock Experience, attending his album launch party. If you go up to $75,000 you will become a “Janie’s Angel”, and get the chance to have dinner with Tyler and receive “one of his iconic scarf-enrobed mic stands (with a working mic)“ plus a signed and numbered copy of the Janie’s Got a Gun lyrics.
Tyler’s solo album, however, has become a bone of contention for his bandmates. Guitarist Brad Whitford says they have had to shelve plans to tour during 2016, because Tyler will be busy promoting his solo albums. “Steven doesn’t want to do it,” Whitford told Billboard. “It’s unfortunate. We kind of feel a little bit abandoned by him. I guess he seems to think his solo career is going to go great guns, and he doesn’t seem to realise that – in my opinion – his fans around the globe want to see him in the context of Aerosmith and don’t really care for whatever he thinks he’s gonna do. I don’t know if he gets that but, hey, that’s what he wants to do. I can’t put a gun to his head. It’s just pretty disappointing.”