Pi Kappa Phi has been good to Ryan Cabrera, and now the Dallas-raised musician is giving back to the fraternity, which has supplied him with venues for a nationwide tour.

Cabrera brings his pop sound to the Auditorium tonight, and all proceeds will benefit the fraternity's Push America organization, which collects money for people with disabilities.

Ken Blidy, president of the MSU's Pi Kappa Phi chapter, said his fraternity appreciates Cabrera's help.

"It means a lot to our fraternity to go out there and help children," Blidy said. "We'd like to see a lot of support from the greek community as well as everyone else from the university. This event's for everyone."

Cabrera's been performing on and off for a month now as part of the Pi Kappa Phi tour, and he also is trying to publicize himself in preparation for the release of his first CD with Atlantic Records, slated for release in the spring.

Even though his CD features a band by his side, Cabrera is currently on a solo tour.

"It's going absolutely amazing so far - the crowd response has been so well in the cities," Cabrera told The State News via telephone from Los Angeles. "I wanna be the guy that's touring 280 days a year. I really love to play and play live."

And, oddly enough, the passion the 21-year-old now displays while on tour was not so noticeable when he first started playing music.

"I kinda just fell into it," Cabrera said. "I was never planning on doing music. I was at a friend's house, I got bored and I picked up my friend's guitar and started playing."

Cabrera didn't even want to sing, until members in one of his earlier bands corralled him into the role.

Several months of voice training later, Cabrera is in the midst of becoming a breakthrough star.

Now, Cabrera makes the journey from L.A. to Michigan, and he said his one distinct memory of being in Michigan is unpleasant.

"The only time I've ever been there was on Sept. 11 (2001), when our plane got grounded," he said. "I had to drive all the way back from Detroit to Dallas. I've never played in Michigan, so I'm excited."