After being presented a Professional Excellence Award by the Bikila organization in 2014, Tesfaye was asked by the organization if he would like to contribute. In August 2016, he donated $50,000 towards a class at the University of Toronto on Ge'ez, the classic language of Ethiopia. He also tweeted to help raise funds and gain support for the program. That same month, Tesfaye also donated $250,000 to Black Lives Matter, and posted a tweet showing his support for the movement.