Every once in a while, something happens in life that makes you stop and think, How in the world did I end up here?
Having Aloe Blacc x Gentleman create a song connected to my Big Brothers Big Sisters match with Little E definitely qualifies.
The song is called “Never Let You Down.”
Original Production by Christina Gotz & Tim
Erdmann
"Never Let You Down" with @AloeBlacc is out now →
https://jugglerz.lnk.to/NeverLetYouDown
And for me, the title alone says an awful lot about what being a Big is supposed to mean.
When I first became involved with Big Brothers Big Sisters, I did not do it expecting recognition.
I certainly did not imagine that years later, I would create something with pieces of my mentoring journey attached to such an amazing song.
I became a Big for a much simpler reason.
I thought I might be able to make a difference in a young person’s life.
That is still the reason.
Mentoring, at least the way I have experienced it, is built on things that are almost painfully ordinary.
Picking somebody up when you said you would.
Asking how school went and actually listening to the answer.
Finding something fun to do together.
Having the uncomfortable conversation when one needs to happen.
Encouraging a young person to think bigger about his future.
And making it clear, over and over again, that somebody is in his corner.
Then I turned that music into an idea.
That is what makes “Never Let You Down” so meaningful to me. A relationship that grew through ordinary days, conversations and adventures became the inspiration for something that could reach people we will never meet.
Music has a way of doing that.
It can take something deeply personal and somehow make it universal.
You do not have to be a Big Brother to understand what it means to have somebody believe in you.
You do not have to be a mentor to remember an adult who showed up at exactly the right time in your life.
Maybe it was a coach.
A teacher.
A neighbor.
An uncle.
A family friend.
Somebody who saw a little more potential in you than you could see in yourself at the time.
That is the part of mentoring I hope people see when they watch this video.
It is not about a Big becoming the hero of a kid’s story.
Little E is perfectly capable of becoming the hero of his own story.
My role is simply to walk beside him for part of the journey.
To offer some guidance.
Some structure.
Some encouragement.
And occasionally a reminder that the choices he makes today are helping build the man he will become tomorrow.
There is another part of this story that matters to me.
The relationship works both ways.
I have spent a lot of time talking about what I hope Little E learns from me.
Respect. Responsibility. Integrity. Grace. Confidence. Accountability.
But being his Big has forced me to think about those things in my own life, too.
If you are going to tell a young person that integrity means doing the right thing when nobody is watching, you had better take a look at what you do when nobody is watching.
If you tell him responsibility means owning his choices, you need to own yours.
If you expect respect from him, you need to give it back.
Kids have a pretty good radar for hypocrisy.
Mentoring keeps you honest.
That is why I often say mentorship is a two-way street.
I signed up thinking I might help shape somebody else’s life.
I did not fully understand how much the experience would continue shaping mine.
A song I will always treasure
Long after the interviews, videos and special moments are over, “Never Let You Down” will always remind me of this chapter in Little E’s life and mine. It is an extraordinary keepsake built around something very ordinary: two people showing up and building a relationship.
I am incredibly grateful to Aloe Blacc x Gentleman and everyone who helped bring this project to life.
But more than anything, I hope somebody watches the video and thinks:
Maybe I could do that.
Maybe I could show up for a kid.
Maybe I could give a few hours of my time.
Maybe there is a young person in Tampa Bay who could use another caring adult in his or her corner.
Because there is.
You could be somebody’s Big.
Big Brothers Big Sisters matches caring adult volunteers, called “Bigs,” with young people, or “Littles,” to build supportive one-to-one relationships that help young people grow in confidence, character and opportunity.
You do not need to be famous. You do not need to write a song. You do not need all the answers.
You just need to be willing to show up.
Learn how to BE A BIG →