Bruce Springsteen to headline fundraiser for veterans in New York
Developing story first seen 5 hours ago
Bruce Springsteen will headline the 20th anniversary edition of Stand Up For Heroes, a veterans' fundraiser taking place on 9 November 2026 at David Geffen Hall in New York's Lincoln Center. Organiser Bob Woodruff marked the milestone by noting the event began in 2007 as what was meant to be a one-off concert but has since become an annual fixture, with Springsteen performing at every edition bar one (2017, when Broadway commitments clashed).
The 2026 line-up will also include comedians Hasan Minhaj, Jon Stewart and Josh Johnson, plus a musical performance from Alex Warren. The Bob Woodruff Foundation event has raised more than $117 million since its inception, and this appearance is currently Springsteen's only confirmed live date following the end of the North American leg of his Land of Hope and Dreams tour. It also comes after he revealed in a 31 July message that his wife and E Street Band bandmate Patti Scialfa, married to him for 38 years, is now in remission from the myeloma that forced her off the road in 2018.
- Springsteen to headline Stand Up For Heroes' 20th anniversary, 9 Nov 2026
- Bill also features Jon Stewart, Hasan Minhaj, Josh Johnson and Alex Warren
- Comes after news that wife Patti Scialfa is in cancer remission
New here? Start with this
Bruce Springsteen is a veteran American rock musician best known for decades of touring and albums with the E Street Band. Stand Up For Heroes is an annual charity concert in New York that raises money for military veterans and their families, run by the Bob Woodruff Foundation, a charity founded by the journalist of the same name after he was seriously injured while reporting in Iraq. The event mixes music and comedy performances, and Springsteen has been closely associated with it since it began in 2007.
The foundation's work focuses on supporting veterans as they return to civilian life, including help with health, employment and family issues, and the annual concert is one of its main sources of funding. Over the years it has become a fixture on the New York entertainment calendar, drawing well-known musicians and comedians to perform for the cause.
Springsteen remains one of the most prominent and enduring figures in American rock music, and his regular involvement in this event has helped raise its profile and its fundraising totals over nearly two decades.
Full account
Bruce Springsteen is to headline this year's Stand Up For Heroes benefit concert in New York, marking the 20th anniversary of the event that raises money for veterans, service members and their families. The show will take place on 9 November 2026 at David Geffen Hall, part of the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts in Manhattan, and is staged in conjunction with the New York Comedy Festival under the auspices of the Bob Woodruff Foundation.
Springsteen will share the bill with singer Alex Warren, best known for his hit 'Ordinary', and The Resilient, a musical act made up largely of severely wounded American combat veterans. Comedy sets will come from Jon Stewart, Hasan Minhaj and The Daily Show's Josh Johnson, continuing the evening's long-standing mix of music and stand-up in tribute to those who have served.
Stand Up For Heroes traces its roots to 2006, with its first full-scale show following in 2007, and organisers say it has since brought in more than $117 million (about £86 million) for veterans' causes. Foundation co-founder Bob Woodruff, an ABC News correspondent, said the event began as what was thought would be a one-off concert but has grown into one of the most meaningful nights of the year, with veterans and service members sharing the stage with well-known performers. Springsteen has been a near-constant presence at the event since its inception, missing only the 2017 edition because of his commitments to his Broadway residency at the time; in 2023 he gave the live debut of 'Addicted to Romance' and duetted with John Mellencamp.
The New York date is currently the only live performance in Springsteen's diary following the conclusion of the North American leg of his Land of Hope and Dreams tour, which wrapped up in Philadelphia in May and was widely linked to his criticism of the Trump administration. He nonetheless made a surprise guest appearance with Bon Jovi at Madison Square Garden in July, and towards the end of that month shared the news, in a recorded message for the Pan-Mass Challenge, that his wife and E Street Band bandmate Patti Scialfa is now in remission from the multiple myeloma she was diagnosed with in 2018, a condition she first spoke about publicly in the 2024 documentary Road Diary.
Where outlets differ
Source 1 (NME) highlights Springsteen's near-unbroken attendance streak at the event and frames it as his only confirmed upcoming live date; it says he disclosed Scialfa's remission via a pre-recorded Pan-Mass Challenge message on 31 July and notes the couple have been married 38 years.
Source 2 (presumed Far Out/similar outlet) gives fuller political context for the Land of Hope and Dreams tour, tying it explicitly to Springsteen's objections to the Trump administration and ICE, including Trump's call to boycott the shows and Springsteen's on-stage response; it also details his July guest slot at Bon Jovi's Madison Square Garden show and the specific songs played there.
Source 2 quotes Bob Woodruff directly and at greater length, and converts the $117 million raised into sterling (£86 million), while Source 1 does not.
Source 2 recounts a specific past Stand Up For Heroes highlight (Springsteen's 2023 live debut of 'Addicted to Romance' and his duet with John Mellencamp), which Source 1 omits, though Source 1 instead stresses the 2017 Broadway-related absence.
More coverage