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Bridgit Mendler Wears Forever 21 on the Red Carpet and Looks Like a Million Bucks

"Atlantis" singer appreciates the modern way of raising money for charity! Hear Bridgit at the 2016 Save the Children Illumination Gala.

By Jennifer Dill Oct 26, 2016 6:36 PMTags
Watch: Bridgit Mendler Champions Gaming for Good

Bridgit Mendler has turned Disney Channel stardom into an opportunity to do everything she can to give back.

The singer and former Wizards of Waverly Place and Good Luck Charlie actress was all smiles last night at the 2016 Save the Children Illumination Gala, where talked to E! News about charity work and the various, sometimes unexpected ways in which people can make a difference.

The benefit brought out some of the entertainment industry's biggest stars, including Jennifer Garner, Dakota Fanning and Iman, familiar faces on the celebrity-activist circuit.

And amid all the black-tie finery, Mendler made a statement in her simple, $25 off-the-shoulder dress from Forever 21, proving that chic red-carpet style doesn't have to be an unobtainable luxury.

But the 23-year-old "Atlantis" artist is no stranger to ensuring that large sums of money go where they're needed. 

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Do-Gooder Gallery

In 2011, Bridgit helped Disney's Friends for Change Foundation raise over $250,000 for Disney's World Wild Life Conservation fund, plus an additional $125,000 for UNICEF.

Jamie McCarthy/Getty Images

Bridgit has also been an ambassador for First Book since 2010 and has participated in numerous fundraisers for the U.K.'s Comic Relief, Give with Target and a Seventeen magazine campaign against cyber-bullying.

But the singer is aware that not everyone has the same opportunities to effect change, so she encourages her fans to step outside the traditional ideas of charity and raise awareness in new ways.

"I think it's really cool to appreciate the modern ways people are having genuine impact and leaving a huge footprint," she said. "[We] might as well get resourceful and creative about the ways of doing that."

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And in keeping with more modern forms of getting the word out, Bridgit gushed about  YouTube star Bachir Boumaaza, who has gained a following through his website Gaming For Good.

"He does gaming for good which is awesome, he has an enormous following. I think somebody told me the figure was like 400 million views," she laughs. "But he's raised an insane amount of money, like millions of dollars for good."

Boumaaza, who goes by the screen name Athene, has collected over 2,000 gamers to help him in his fundraising quest, and as of April, Gaming for Good had raised over $22 million for Save the Children, the site's charity of choice.

"For everybody who says, 'Don't sit in front of the computer,' like I made fun of my brother for sitting in front of the computer all day, but look what this guy does!" Bridgit exclaimed.

So if you're thinking there's nothing you can do to help change the world, Bridgit encourages us all to think again—there are more ways to get involved than ever before.