Joe's Pub Celebrates 25 Years At The Annual Gala And Raises Funds For Artist Development Programs

Since 1998, Joe's Pub, a program of The Public Theater, has been an independent, non-profit music venue, dedicated to supporting performing artists at every phase of their careers, ranging from emerging artists to international superstars like Alicia Keys and Adele. 

On Monday, the venue celebrated their annual Gala to raise funds for the Vanguard Award & Residency, Joe's Pub Working Group (JPWG), and New York Voices. These programs play a crucial role in nurturing and sustaining the careers of New York City-based artists at every level.

The evening included libations and dinner crafted by NoHo Hospitality, and performances by five-time Grammy Award-winner Joe's Pub 2024 Vanguard Award-winner Angélique Kidjo, plus Queen Esther, Ellen Winter, Firas Zreik, Omar Offendum and Vuyo Sotashe & Chris Pattishall who are all part of the artist development programs this year.

This year's event was chaired by the long-standing culinary partners from Joe's Pub and NoHo Hospitality: Kevin Abbott, Serge Becker, Andrew Carmellini, Luke Ostrom, Josh Pickard, & Paul Salmon.

In discussing the event, Kevin Abbott, Managing Partner of Joe's Pub at the Public said, “Last night was a stunning celebration of a quarter of a century of hard work and partnership that ended with a dance party led by the extraordinary Angélique Kidjo.  It was an honor to raise a glass beside our partners at The Public, Oskar Eusits , Patrick Willingham and Alex Knowlton, as we celebrated our tireless, 25 year commitment to supporting the art presented on our stage — while providing an unparalleled culinary and hospitality experience!”

Isabel Kim, Associate Director of Joe's Pub, added “The gala was a wonderful homage to those who built Joe's Pub 25 years ago and what it is today. The evening's vibrant performances were a representation of Joe's Pub in 1998 through the present and what's to come. It's a joy to see musical giants come back to Joe's Pub, and seeing Angélique Kidjo perform on our stage will stay with me for a long, long time."

The gala's programming was crowned with a performance by Angelique Kidjo, the 2024 recipient of the Joe's Pub Vanguard Award & Residency. For years, Kidjo has cross-pollinated the West African traditions of her childhood in Benin with elements of American R&B, funk and jazz, as well as influences from Europe and Latin America, to beautiful results. This award and yearlong residency celebrates the career of a singular artist who has contributed to American life and pop culture and is a part of the Joe's Pub family of artists. Past recipients of this award are Nona Hendryx, Judy Collins, Laurie Anderson, and Barbara Maier Gustern.

Joe's Pub Working Group (JPWG) serves as a hub for New York-based artists offering administrative resources, physical space, and curatorial services, to cultivate a community atmosphere wherein those artists can create and sustain new and developing work. This year Ellen Winter, Firas Zreik, and Queen Esther from the program joined the Gala stage. Esraa Warda is additionally part of this year's group.

Omar Offendum and Vuyo Sotashe & Chris Pattishall, who are alumni of New York Voices, also joined the stage at the Gala. This program is the Pub's artist commissioning program, supported by The Public as part of its long history of cultivating the country's most celebrated artists at every stage. The program supports the creation of new works by critically-acclaimed musicians and performers and encourages artists to explore their storytelling, narratives and songwriting processes. Past commissioned artists include Bridget Everett, Jean Grae, Murray Hill, The Illustrious Blacks, Sunny Jain, Dawn Landes, Samora Pinderhughes, Alynda Segarra (Hurray for the Riff Raff), Somi, Allen Toussaint, and more.

More About JOE'S PUB

JOE'S PUB, a program of The Public Theater, was named for Public Theater founder Joseph Papp. Since it opened in 1998, Joe's Pub has played a vital role in The Public's mission of supporting artists at all stages of their careers with an intimate space to perform and develop new work. Joe's Pub presents the best in live music and performance nightly, continuing its commitment to diversity, production values, community, and artistic freedom. In addition to one-night-only concerts and multi-night engagements, Joe's Pub is home to the annual Habibi Festival, which hosts artists representing contemporary and traditional musics of the SWANA (Southwest Asia/North Africa) region, and The Vanguard Award & Residency, a yearlong curation series that celebrates the career, and community, of a prolific and influential artist, including Nona Hendryx, Judy Collins, Laurie Anderson, Barbara Maier Gustern, and Angelique Kidjo.

With its intimate atmosphere and superior acoustics, Joe's Pub presents over 700 shows featuring artists based in New York City and touring performers from all over the world, and hosts over 100,000 audience members annually. Beyond public performances, Joe's Pub also leads artist development programs like New York Voices, a commissioning program that helps musicians develop new performance projects, and Joe's Pub Working Group, an artist-led development and collaboration cohort. Current commissioned artists include Dan Fishback, Omar Offendum, and Sarah Elizabeth Charles.