Entertainment Music A$AP Rocky Donates 120 Meals to New York Homeless Shelter Where He and His Mother Once Resided The rapper and his mother lived at the homeless shelter during the early 2000s By Nicholas Rice Nicholas Rice Instagram Twitter Nicholas Rice is a Staff Editor for PEOPLE Magazine. He began working with the brand as an Editorial Intern in early 2020, before later transitioning to a freelance role, and then staff positions soon after. Nicholas writes and edits anywhere between 7 to 9 stories per day on average for PEOPLE, spanning across each vertical the brand covers. Nicholas has previous work experience with Billboard, POPSUGAR, Bustle and Elite Daily. When not working, Nicholas can be found playing with his 5 dogs, listening to pop music or eating mozzarella sticks. People Editorial Guidelines Published on November 26, 2020 03:12PM EST Share Tweet Pin Email A$AP Rocky. Photo: Peter White/Getty A$AP Rocky is a man of the people. On Wednesday evening, ahead of Thanksgiving, the 32-year-old rapper generously donated 120 meals to a homeless shelter in New York City where he and his mother, Renee Black, once resided during the early 2000s. According to TMZ, Rocky — whose real name is Rakim Mayers — personally delivered the meals from Harlem's Amy Ruth's Restaurant to the Regent Family Residence, a shelter located on the city's Upper West Side. The outlet states that the shelter currently serves 83 families, including 111 kids. Volunteers of America, which manages Regent Family Residence, did not immediately respond to PEOPLE's request for comment. In a photograph obtained by TMZ, the Grammy-nominated musician is seen posing closely beside his mother, as the pair both donned face masks amid the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. For the outing, Rocky sported a white hoodie topped by an oversized red flannel shirt and a pair of jeans, as his mother wore an all-black ensemble. How to Give Thanks and Celebrate Community This Thanksgiving: Donations, Volunteering and Virtual Hangouts Johnny Nunez/Getty Back in 2012, Rocky spoke candidly about living in the homeless shelter with his mother and sister and the emotions behind that experience. Speaking with Hard Knock TV, Rocky detailed that he was in middle school at the time and was embarrassed by his living situation. Never miss a story — sign up for PEOPLE's free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human interest stories. Sharing that he would tell his friends that he was in trouble when they would ask to come over, the "Fashion Killa" crooner noted that he eventually learned to accept and embrace his situation. "I was a little embarrassed as a kid but I rejoiced it and I embraced what that is because it made me who I am today," he said at the time. "That was really hard for me back then, being kind of like exposed to that kind of lifestyle is crazy." RELATED VIDEO: Food Artist Gets in the Thanksgiving Spirit And Rocky wasn't the only famous face who generously gave back with food this holiday season. Earlier this week, Tyler Perry opened up his Atlanta movie studio, Tyler Perry Studios, for four hours to feed 5,000 families with a combination of food boxes and gift cards for local supermarket chain Kroger. Perry, 51, personally funded the event, called TPS Giving, and studio employees donated their time to volunteer and hand out all of the goods. "Tyler was heartbroken seeing people all over the country stand in line for food so he decided he wanted to give back to his community in Atlanta," a source close to Perry previously told PEOPLE. "Hopefully this encourages others who are able to, to give back during the holiday season in a year that has been difficult for many.” Cars lined up over 12 hours before the official start of the event. To maintain proper COVID-19 safety protocols, the event was drive-thru only, and all employees working the event were tested ahead of time.