ABOUT

In the mid 1970's, when New York City was on the verge of economic collapse, Billy Joel wrote "New York State of Mind," a love letter expressing his passion for the city. So, when the COVID-19 pandemic was wreaking havoc on New York City, our organization believed that this song could be the rallying cry the city needed. With Billy Joel's support and approval, we created an all-new recording and music video featuring die-hard New Yorker musicians and singers—Idina Menzel, Sara Bareilles, Stephen Colbert, Cautious Clay, Suzanne Vega and Billy's daughter Alexa Ray Joel, to name a few—all filmed in iconic NYC locations, including Birdland Jazz Club, Coney Island Pier, The Steinway Factory and the Ed Sullivan Theater. The film drove to our website, where visitors could donate or join a wide array of City organizations and neighborhood programs all of which support New Yorkers in need; from the food insecure and homeless to restaurants, actors and young people in need. The response was overwhelming, generating over $2 billion+ in earned media for the organization and in turn, the city's support programs, including being featured on CBS "Sunday Morning." Traffic to our website from people looking to donate or join was up over 1000% in the weeks following the video launch with many of the organizations reporting major increases in support.