Updated: Jan. 17, 5:59 p.m. E.T.
Ice Cube's "It Was A Good Day" is one the most classic chill-out rap jams ever.
In the song, Cube lists off everything that made it a good day: no smog, a date with a girl, no violence in South Central L.A. ...
... and a Goodyear blimp with its lights flashing: "Ice Cube's A Pimp."
Well, a few guys got together to make the Goodyear blimp a reality, all the while raising money for a youth charity in South Central, called A Place Called Home.
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A Place Called Home is a non-profit geared toward helping kids in South Central ages eight to 21 by providing them with educational programs, counseling, and mentorship. The non-profit offers after-school, weekend, and summer programs, as well as a focus on the arts.
They're calling the project "Good Day Blimp" and are raising money through their Crowdtilt fundraising page to reach their goal of $25,000 by Jan. 20th.
There is, of course, a catch.
In order for the money raised to go to charity, Goodyear needs to agree to fly the blimp. On the Good Day Blimp website, they write "Corporations are just like us, they don't like to do anything until it becomes really important."
From the Good Day Blimp press release:
3 guys are launching a project called Good Day Blimp. The goal is to put enough social pressure on Goodyear so they fly their blimp Ice Cube's way. The rub? They are asking the Internet to help us raise a ton of money for A Place Called Home (a South Central youth charity), but on the condition that Goodyear flies the blimp. That's right. If Goodyear doesn't fly the blimp, charity doesn't get the money. DUN- DUN-DUUUUN.
So we're hoping people will spread the good word. Sure you might not get those winning Powerball numbers, but you might just bring a smile to someone's face, and who knows, maybe even reserve a spot in hip- hop heaven.
And just why are three dudes with no affiliation to Goodyear, Ice Cube, or APCH putting on a stunt like this? "We're crazy like that," they write in their release. Also, it's a way for "It Was A Good Day" "enthusiasts" to pay homage to the song.
A $5 donation to the cause gets you "Good Homie Status," while a $50 donation will get you the awesome limited edition "Good Day Blimp" poster below, illustrated by artist Michael Marsicano.
Update: Cube appeared earlier this week on Late Night With Jimmy Fallon, where the two discussed the campaign and the rapper agreed to match the money that was raised that night.
And Goodyear then responded and agreed to make the blimp a reality, tweeting their official offer to the rapper:
.@icecube Won't you #RideAlong with us and the @apch2830 kids to make Jan. 20 a GOOD DAY? #GoodDayBlimp
In the letter from Goodyear senior vice president of global communications Paul Fitzhenry, the company said that while the group rarely is able to accommodate the requests from the thousands of charities who write in, this particular campaign got their attention:
However, this unique proposal got our attention and we want to make sure this group of kids has a 'Good Day.' So here's our offer: we'd like to fly the Goodyear Blimp on January 20th over Los Angeles, and also use that opportunity to give rides to a group of the kids of A Place Called Home.And one more thing. To make this a truly GREAT Day for the kids of A Place Called Home, we're inviting you to Ride Along with the kids and proudly display the message "It's A Good Day" on the side of the blimp.We look forward to hearing back!
So far, the campaign has raised $15,515 of their $25,000 goal, with three days left.
It's your move, Ice Cube!
