Minneapolis —The Starkey Hearing Foundation is joining forces with recording artist and actress Miley Cyrus to promote the "Listen Carefully" campaign for May’s “Better Hearing and Speech Month.”

The goal of the Listen Carefully campaign is to spread the word among young people and adults to protect their hearing by lowering the volume on their mp3 players and other portable listening devices.

Cyrus (pictured, right) is getting involved through the campaign’s Listen Carefully Sweepstakes, which runs through June 15, 2011. The sweepstakes invites fans to enter for a chance to win a "listening experience" with the famous singer and actress during a sound check as she prepares for her performance at the Starkey Hearing Foundation’s Annual Awards Gala on July 24 in Minneapolis,

Cyrus helped officially launch the campaign with a series of public service ads that deliver the message, "Your hearing is fragile, so don’t listen loudly, listen carefully."

"As an artist, I want to make sure fans are able to experience the magic of music as it was intended," said Cyrus in the press statement. "By just lowering the volume and using the right protection for your ears, hearing loss can be prevented, which means never losing the ability to enjoy the sound of a guitar, a beautiful lyric or a favorite song."

Miley Cyrus first became involved with the Starkey Hearing Foundation during a recent trip to Haiti, where she joined the Foundation on a mission to distribute hearing aids to those in need. During the trip, Miley learned about the Listen Carefully campaign and was quick to jump on board to lend her support.

"With 6.5 million teens recognized with some level of hearing loss, Better Hearing and Speech Month is a great time for us to inform parents and young people about just how fragile one’s hearing is and the need to protect it," said Bill Austin, CEO of Starkey Laboratories and founder of the Starkey Hearing Foundation. "The majority of teen hearing loss is preventable, and it is our hope that the Listen Carefully campaign, with support from entertainers like Miley Cyrus, can make a difference.”

SOURCE: Starkey Hearing Foundation