Entertainment

Bon Jovi lends an ear to youth

June 6, 2011 / 3:35 PM EDT / CBS/AP

Musician Jon Bon Jovi, left, listens to Dariel Veras, 19, during a visit to the Youth Education & Employment Success Center, Monday, June 6, 2011, in Newark, N.J. AP Photo/Julio Cortez

NEWARK, N.J. (CBS/AP) Rocker Jon Bon Jovi has a good ear.

The singer-songwriter has been taking a break from his worldwide concerts to engage in a different kind of tour, listening to the concerns of young people across the United States.

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The 49-year-old rocker visited a youth services center in New Jersey's largest city on Monday as the final stop on a "listening tour with disengaged youth.''

It's part of the New Jersey native's role as a member of the White House Council for Community Solutions, which is looking at successful youth programs that can be replicated.

Participants in the Newark session told Bon Jovi that jobs, a lack of mentors for young people and bullying were among their top concerns.

An avid sports fan and father of four, Bon Jovi is married to his high school sweetheart, Dorothea Hurley. He also has worked on behalf of the Special Olympics, Habitat for Humanity, the American Red Cross, and the Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation.