Steven Tyler founded Janie's Fund — named after Aerosmith's 1989 hit "Janie's Got a Gun" — in 2015 with partner organization Youth Villages to benefit young women who have been victims of abuse. This year he held the charity's inaugural gala ball at Red Studios in Hollywood, Calif., and what a successful evening it was.
The event's main attraction was a performance by Tyler with his country band Loving Mary, who rocked through classic hits such as "Sweet Emotion," "Dream On" and "Walk This Way." Alice Cooper, Aerosmith drummer Joey Kramer and Extreme guitarist Nuno Bettencourt also made appearances. The event also included watching the 60th GRAMMY Awards live.
With 500 guests assembled, Tyler raised $2.4 million, nearly doubling the $2.5 million total the charity has raised up until the gala. All the money raised will go toward supporting and protecting female victims of sexual abuse and trauma.
"The whole reason I'm in this is because I know what happens to a girl if she's sexually abused at 14, sent out on the street to sell crack at 15, her mother has her hook at 16, she's bringing johns home at 17 because she looks older," Tyler told Forbes. "At 18, she's left off at a bus station in Oklahoma, doesn't know where she is or what's going on. She's broken. Now, she, for the rest of her life, has a problem with sex, has a problem with men coming on to her. There are men in America that murder people, they get caught with a gun in their hand they get seven f***ing years! She gets 70 years — 70 years of her life has been ruined and that f***ing kills me. That kills me."
For more information on the Janie's Fund, visit the organization's website.
