Pitbull Receives Family Day Artist Achievement Award from the T.J. Martell Foundation

Pitbull has added another award to his resume…

The 33-year-old Cuban American rap superstar, the top-ranking Latino artist on Forbes’ World’s Highest-Paid Hip-Hop Acts list, was honored with the first ever Family Day Artist Achievement Award at the T.J. Martell Foundation Family Day, recently held at the Hammerstein Ballroom in New York City.

Pitbull

The T.J. Martell Foundation uses Family Day, a carnival-style fundraiser with silent auctions and musical performances, to help raise money for cancer, leukemia and AIDS research. To date, the foundation has raised over $5 million, with Corson and his team contributing over $300,000.

Orangizers said the decision to highlight Pitbull, who headlined the day’s musical showcase, was an easy one, considering the artist’s history in the industry and path to stardom.

“He’s one of the great stories in music in the last five or six years. I know what family means to him, and I know that he’s a guy that really stands behind causes. I just hoped he would do it, and he agreed in an instant.”

Pitbull, born Armando Christian Perez, was thrown out of his parental home and spent time with a foster family with whom he never felt fully comfortable.

“Something like this doesn’t come with a whole lot of hard work,” Pitbull said while accepting the award, just moments after finishing his set of hits, including his most recent singles “Fireball” and “Timber.”

“I didn’t grow up with much of a family, so everybody that’s out here enjoying Family Day together, this is what it’s all about. There’s nothing like family.”

The event was hosted by Hilary Duff and also featured performances by Timeflies, Bleachers, Us the Duo and Bea Miller.