Press Release

ADL To Honor Music Industry Legend Scooter Braun for his Leading Role in Bringing the Nova Music Festival Exhibition to U.S. Audiences

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Braun to be recognized at 30th anniversary ADL Concert Against Hate at the Kennedy Center


New York, NY, August 15, 2024 – ADL (the Anti-Defamation League) today announced that entertainment executive Scooter Braun will be recognized for his instrumental role in bringing the Nova Music Festival Exhibition to audiences in the United States. “6:29 AM: the Moment the Music Stood Still” powerfully chronicles the Oct. 7, 2023, massacre at the Nova Music Festival in Israel, where thousands gathered for a celebration of life, peace and music. 

A poignant, powerful tribute, the Nova exhibition serves as a wide, in-depth remembrance of the 405 people killed, 45 people kidnapped, and a tribute to those who survived the largest massacre in music history and the deadliest day in Jewish history since the Holocaust.

Braun will be honored during the 2024 ADL In Concert Against Hate, for his courageous leadership in bringing the exhibition to communities across the U.S. and for being an ardent advocate for the Jewish community. The Nova Music Festival Exhibition comes to Los Angeles this month after a sold-out extended run in New York, where 113,000 visitors honored the departed during a period of three months.

“Since Oct. 7, Scooter Braun has used his platform and voice to share stories of survivors, advocate for the return of hostages and to educate his followers and the public about the horrific events that day,” said Jonathan Greenblatt, ADL CEO. “At a time when some were trying to explain away or even deny the atrocities that took place at the Nova Music Festival, Braun was working tirelessly to ensure this exhibit was seen by countless people across America, giving them the painful but essential experience of staring directly into the face of hate and finding the resolve to fight it.”

“On Oct. 7th the largest massacre in the history of music took place at the Nova Music Festival and in response too many in our industry stayed silent. Over 400 innocent music lovers were murdered and over 40 taken hostage and many still waiting to come home. Music must always be a safe place and the silence was deafening,” said Scooter Braun. “Alongside Joe Teplow, Josh Kadden, and the amazing organizers of Nova, we were able to bring this exhibit to fruition in New York, and now Los Angeles. Our goal is to have all people see themselves through their own love of music and live concerts. I am honored and humbled to accept this award, and accept it on behalf of the amazing tribe of Nova. We can’t and should not look away… and we must dance again.”

Braun was recently awarded by Mayor Eric Adams of New York for his efforts to encourage peace during the annual Jewish Heritage Celebration at Gracie Mansion in May. Braun also launched the Care Together campaign in March, where he donated hundreds of thousands of dollars to Care International and the Hostages and Missing Families Forum, to get much needed financial support to the people most acutely impacted by the ongoing conflict in Israel and Palestine.

Braun also served as co-founder of the One Love Manchester benefit concert, in response to the May 22, 2017 terrorist bombing at Manchester Arena, which killed 22 people and injured over 1,000. In only two weeks, Braun, alongside Ariana Grande, Simon Moran, and Melvin Benn, organized the concert and telethon, which was attended by over 55,000 people and saw proceeds donated to the We Love Manchester Emergency Fund to help victims of the attack and their families. Following the show, the British Red Cross received more than £10 million in donations.

Braun is also part of the First Responders Children’s Foundation, World Central Kitchen, Safe Heart, HIAS, Pencils of Promise, Fuck Cancer, Care.org, Save a Child’s Heart, serves as a board member of Make A Wish and Pencils of Promise, and personally founded, led efforts for, or heavily participated within the Hand in Hand benefit after Hurricane Harvey, March for Our Lives, the Stuck with U x First Responders Children’s Foundation, and the Braun Fellowship for Youth Activism.

ADL’s “In Concert Against Hate” will celebrate its 30th anniversary this fall at the Kennedy Center in Washington D.C. The annual concert and award ceremony recognizes celebrities and everyday heroes who have played a significant role in standing up to hatred, injustice and bias across society. This year’s In Concert Against Hate will be held on Monday, Nov. 18 at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, D.C. Actors, musicians, civil rights leaders, policymakers and friends of ADL will join the celebration.

Previous honorees at the ADL Concert have included various individuals and groups such as Rep. John Lewis (D-GA), Ruby Bridges, Gavin Grimm, Daniel Pearl, Imam Abdullah Antepli, Olivia Coley-Pearson, Tova Friedman and Aron Goodman, Judy and Dennis Shepard, Susan Bro and Eva Kor, and many others.

For more information, visit http://concertagainsthate.org/

ADL is the leading anti-hate organization in the world. Founded in 1913, its timeless mission is “to stop the defamation of the Jewish people and to secure justice and fair treatment to all.” Today, ADL continues to fight all forms of antisemitism and bias, using innovation and partnerships to drive impact. A global leader in combating antisemitism, countering extremism and battling bigotry wherever and whenever it happens, ADL works to protect democracy and ensure a just and inclusive society for all. More at www.adl.org.