Big Sean's water work inspired by mum

Rapper Big Sean has credited his own mother's battle with lead poisoning with inspiring him to help the victims of the Flint, Michigan water crisis.

A decision by local authorities in 2014 to change the the city's water supply from one river to another resulted in its contamination and has left residents without clean water.

Many celebrities, including Beyonce, Madonna, Cher, Mark Wahlberg and Eminem, have offered aid to those affected, and the hip hop star, who hails from Michigan, also recently donated $10,000 to the cause through his Sean Anderson Foundation.

However, he is stepping up his efforts with his Heal Flint Kids project, which aims to provide medical attention to children affected by the lead contamination.

"I believe in Karma, I believe in just being a righteous dude and a good person," he says. "It's always been a major, major part of not just my career, but my upbringing..."

"What's going on in Flint obviously is tragic, it's not just a natural disaster though, there needs to be some blame placed on the people there who deserve it," he continues. "But you know we are stepping in and doing what we can - our goal was to raise $50,000, but now we almost have raised $100,000. And it's not just for water, we aren't just donating water bottles. We are helping kids get the proper care that they need, see the proper doctors."

And the 27-year-old knows how important proper medical care is because he watched his own mother battle lead poisoning in the past.

"My mom actually has experienced lead poisoning to a degree, so we knew how deep it is, and I know the things that my mom went through and it's real, real painful and real like, devastating (sic)," he adds. "We just want to make sure that they get the proper care, proper doctors and proper attention and not just the water bottles - but the water too."