Keri Hilson has been keeping a low profile lately, but the Atlanta songstress stopped by CNN’s ATL studios on Tuesday for a good cause. She appeared alongside a 12-year-old student to encourage youth to do something for their community during the summer as part of DoSomething.org and Bing’s “Summer of Doing” campaign.

The “Pretty Girl Rock” singer credits her mother for instilling charitable values in her.

“My mother was very integral in making sure that we understood the importance of giving back in our community,” said Keri, who will dedicate her time to help renovate Osborne High School on Wednesday. “In Decatur, we would feed the homeless many, many, many Saturdays. We had to wake up during the ungodly hours and pack their lunches in brown paper bags.”

Giving back has been a reward in itself.

“It gives your life a purpose and you may not realize that when you’re young, but it really does give you a sense of appreciation, a humbleness that you wouldn’t get if you weren’t being so selfless,” she explained.

In addition to working on her third album, Keri will be heading to the big screen in the sequel to The Chronicles of Riddick, a sci-fi movie starring Vin Diesel.