As many of you might already know I have been paying my bills and providing for my family my entire life by busking in the subways of New York City for the past 37 years. 

As hard as this is, I am reaching out to you because I have no other choice. I haven't been able to sleep much the past few nights thinking about what I am about to say. 

The house my family lives in was foreclosed on and we received court papers to vacate the premises. I do not have the money to pay first months rent , or the deposit for a new place. 

Since last Sept I have been getting help financially from two young guys who have become my managers. They have been able to help me take care of my family, pay each months rent, as well as wipe our overdue utility bills in the winter to keep the heat and lights on. This has allowed me to spend time away from the subway and start getting into studios to begin writing original records for my debut album. However, after almost a year of receiving assistance and help from them ...they too have completely exhausted their own life savings to keep my dreams alive.

After my video went viral last Sept, the great people at Pitchfork and James Corden helped tell my story to the world. But since my video of me singing from the subway last year went viral, my situation hasn't changed. I've lived my entire life in the projects and we are still here.

A few days ago I was informed of something called gofundme. I am skeptical to ask for help from anyone, its just the way I am and was raised. I have been fighting my managers about publicly coming out about my situation for almost a month now but I don’t know what else to do as we have passed the court order date to vacate the premises (7/31). Its taken a lot for me to publicly come out like this. I don't want anyone to think I'm putting my family's well being second to myself and my career. Chasing my dream is something Ive been waiting for my whole life but making sure my kids and grandkids have a home is more important than anything else. 

My managers convinced me that asking for help from my fans is okay, so I'm writing this letter to anyone who is willing to donate and support me and my family in these incredibly tough times. 

My goal is to raise 10k dollars to pay for 2 months rent ($3,000 per month plus the deposit = 9k + 1k for security deposit, real estate fee, and moving costs ). It may seem like a lot, but even in the projects where I live in NYC,  finding a house for all of my kids, grandkids and other family members is hard and not cheap.
 I only want to take that, nothing more. Beyond that, I would rather have my art and music speak for itself. 

I want anyone who donates to know that I plan to return the favor in the future in some way. I dont know what that entails yet, but I promise I will make it up to every single one of you individuals. I am a man of my word. Its really all I have and ever had in my lifetime. 

Also, my paypal is [email editado] for those who would rather use that method.


Thank you for taking the time to read this. I for sure thought my journey was supposed to end in the subways, but it feels like God has something else in store.