Lady Gaga

Lady Gaga (thesilvertongueonline.com)

The stars are joined forces for a big hiatus!

Several famous names are ditching the digital world to raise awareness and money for charity. Among them are Lady Gaga, Alicia Keys, Justin Timberlake, Kim and Khloe Kardashian, Ryan Seacrest, and Usher.

They will said goodbye to their digital life, at least temporarily, in an effort to help raise awareness for World AIDS Day and also raise money for Alicia Keys’ charity Keep a Child Alive. The action that will be called “The Digital Life Sacrifice” will start Wednesday, Dec. 1, which is also World AIDS Day.

Regarding the event, new mom Alicia Keys said: “It’s so important to shock you to the point of waking up. It’s not that people don’t care or it’s not that people don’t want to do something, it’s that they never thought of it quite like that.” She added, “This is such a direct and instantly emotional way and a little sarcastic, you know, of a way to get people to pay attention.”

Once the charity reaches $1 million through text message donations to help families with HIV/AIDS in Africa and India, the celebs will return to their Facebook and Twitter accounts. Keys herself now has more than 2.6 million followers on Twitter, while Lady Gaga, who was dubbed as “the Lady of Twiiter” not so long ago, has more than 7.2 million followers on Twitter, and nearly 24 million fans on Facebook.

The stars have also reportedly filmed “last tweet and testament” videos to help promote the cause, with some even appearing in coffins. Elijah Wood, Jennifer Hudson, Serena Williams and Keys’ husband, Swizz Beatz are also among the participants.

The “Keep a Child Alive” program was created in 2003 in an effort to raise funds for families affected by HIV and AIDS in Africa and India. It will accept donations through text messages and bar-code technology, which is featured in the charity’s Buy Life campaign. “We’re trying to sort of make the remark: Why do we care so much about the death of one celebrity as opposed to millions and millions of people dying in the place that we’re all from?” said Leigh Blake, the president and co-founder of Keep a Child Alive. “It’s about love and respect and human dignity,” she added.

Keys is hoping more people — both famous folks and non-celebs — get involved once the new initiative launches: “It just doesn’t have to be just because you’re a celebrity or something like that. It can be anybody.”

So, will you follow their footsteps and gone hiatus too?

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