I love these people out there are just as good as us, and we're nothing without them

James Brown

It is the sixth consecutive year the singer has made his generous gesture to the people of Augusta - the city where he grew up.

"The more we give, the more we receive," he said.

Brown, who grew up in poverty, has long stated his passionate commitment to helping the city's deprived community.

Those years when he has not been able to make the turkey giveaway in person, he has recruited someone else to act as stand-in.

"I made it because God helped me to make it and people loved me," explained the singer.

"I love these people, they are just as good as us, and we're nothing without them."

Success story

But Brown's efforts to help the poor of his home town have sparked controversy.

Public debates have been held concerning the city's lack of support for the singer.

Many people would also like to see the city's civic centre named after him.

However, Brown himself has stressed that he wants to keep politics out of his charitable activties.

"People need to eat first," he commented. "It's God's temple, and we need to keep it in good shape."

Brown's rise from juvenile delinquent to the so-called Godfather of Soul, has been held up as a great example of a modern American success stories.

Brown, the only child of a poor family, was sent to Augusta at the age of five to live in an aunt's brothel.

Singing gospel music and playing piano, drums and guitar served as an emotional outlet for the young Brown.

Having made music his career, Brown has gone on to amass 98 entries on Billboard's top 40 R&B singles charts, a record unsurpassed by any other artist.

Seventeen on them reached number one, a feat topped only by Stevie Wonder and Louis Jordan, and equalled only by Aretha Franklin.