New York Public Radio Announces 2023 Annual Gala Hosted By Comedian Roy Wood Jr.

This Year’s Celebration Honors The Tow Foundation 

Tuesday, November 14 at NYC’s Iconic Plaza Hotel

With Special Performances by J’Nai Bridges, Brooklyn College Opera Theater, & High and Mighty Brass Band

New York Public Radio (NYPR)—home of WNYC, WQXR, WNYC Studios, Gothamist, and The Jerome L. Greene Performance Space—will hold its 2023 gala at NYC’s iconic Plaza Hotel, on Tuesday, November 14. The annual gala is NYPR’s largest fundraising event of the year—celebrating the organization’s vital and illuminating work, its impact within our many communities, and the generous supporters who make it all possible. This year’s event will honor longtime NYPR supporter The Tow Foundation. The evening will be hosted by the former Daily Show correspondent, stand-up comedian, actor, and Emmy Award-winning producer Roy Wood Jr., and feature special performances by J’Nai Bridges, Brooklyn College Opera Theater, and High and Mighty Brass Band.

Tickets & more here

The evening will feature a cocktail party and seated dinner, with performances and speakers from WNYC and WQXR’s celebrated programs. Past gala performers and hosts include Samantha Bee, Julianna Margulies, Kishi Bashi, Aidy Bryant, John Turturro, Hilary Hahn, Wynton Marsalis, Cynthia Nixon, Renee Fleming, and Brian Stokes Mitchell.

This year’s host, Roy Wood Jr. is best known for his work as a stand-up comic and as a former correspondent on Comedy Central’s The Daily Show. He began his comedy career on the radio while in his late teens, following in his father’s radio broadcasting footsteps. He later went on to host The Roy Wood Jr. Show and perform on HBO’s Def Comedy Jam, NBC's Last Comic Standing, as well as sitcoms, multiple stand-up comedy specials on Comedy Central, ABC, TBS, along with various late night shows and feature film roles. In 2023, Wood Jr. received critical accolades for hosting The White House Correspondents Dinner helping drive its highest ratings since 2017.

About New York Public Radio

New York Public Radio reaches tens of millions of people every month—across WNYC, Gothamist, WQXR, WNYC Studios, and the Jerome L. Greene Performance Space. We produce award-winning journalism and groundbreaking podcasts in service to democracy. We convene courageous conversations and make the joy of classical music accessible to all. We are driven by the spirit of New York, rooted in service to the metropolitan region, and committed to building a future filled with new and diverse voices that challenge, empower, and delight. New York Public Radio’s mission is to make the mind more curious, the heart more open and the spirit more joyful through excellent audio programming that is deeply rooted in New York.

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About The Tow Foundation

Celebrating 35 years of service, The Tow Foundation was established in 1988 by Leonard and Claire Tow as a way to give back to the communities that shaped them. Its five primary impact areas are equity and justice, medicine and public health, arts and culture, higher education, and civic engagement. Grounded in its decades of work in Connecticut and New York, the foundation supports visionary leaders and nonprofit organizations that promote wellness and access to opportunities so that both individuals and communities can thrive. It works to ensure people can become full participants in their communities, achieve transformative and lasting progress, and develop approaches that allow everyone to reach their full potential. The Tow Foundation is a proud supporter of WNYC’s local news and New York Public Radio’s broader work on behalf of the region.

WEBSITE | INSTAGRAM

About Roy Wood Jr.

Roy Wood Jr. is a comedian, an Emmy-nominated documentary producer for the PBS documentary The Neutral Ground, and a former correspondent on Comedy Central’s Emmy-nominated The Daily Show and former host of Comedy Central’s award-winning podcast, The Daily Show: Beyond the Scenes. Spring of 2023, Wood Jr. guest hosted The Daily Show and headlined the White House Correspondents' Dinner to its highest ratings since 2017. Wood Jr, began his comedy career in 1998 at 19 while attending Florida A&M University. In 2006, he debuted on network television on The Late Show with David Letterman. In 2008, he appeared on HBO’s historic Def Comedy Jam and was selected by America as one of the top three finalists on Last Comic Standing on NBC. Wood Jr.’s first Comedy Central one-hour stand-up special Roy Wood Jr.: Father Figure, debuted in 2017, the same year he was named the new host of Comedy Central’s storytelling series, This is Not Happening. Debuting in 2019, his second Comedy Central special Roy Wood Jr.: No One Loves You, remains the network’s highest-rated original stand-up premiere. In 2021, his third Comedy Central special Roy Wood Jr.: Imperfect Messenger, aired hyper-recent material just two weeks after taping.