Seated

What a way to end the year. Thursday with Ed Sheeran was one of those rare moments where work, life, and purpose all collided... The choice to involve Seated in Thursday's event hit home for me in a way that is hard to put into words, but here is my sappy attempt... I founded Seated while living at 217 Bowery, two doors down from The Bowery Mission at 227 Bowery. (That 217 address is still on Seated’s original incorporation documents). The Mission has served NYC's homeless community for over 150 years with daily meals, clothing, recovery programs, and beds to sleep in. We volunteered there. We donated our winter clothes there every year. The community they served was front and center and part of our everyday life. The neighborhood has changed a lot over those 150 years, and especially in the 18 years since I moved there. For example, more than a decade ago, the Salvation Army building next door to the Mission, that housed over 100 people for them, was sold for over $30M and converted into a hotel. Shortly after that sale, during an open house at the Mission, I asked one of their executive directors whether they were considering selling the final Mission building at 227... now that it would be wedged between the massive New Museum of Contemporary Art and a luxury hotel... and easily worth tens of millions of dollars itself. Their answer stayed with me to this day... They did not want NYC's issue of homelessness to be out of sight, out of mind. They wanted the needs of their community to remain visible... or as they said... "in sight, and top of mind" and impossible to ignore. So on Thursday, more than a decade later, when Ed chose to put those needs back "in sight and top of mind" by doing a surprise Christmas singalong at The Bowery Mission for less than 100 of his biggest fans, raising money for the organization, AND trusting Seated to help make that happen... it meant so much to me in some kind of crazy full-circle moment... and more than I can fully explain. Thanks to Ashley Mowry & Marty Diamond at Wasserman and the Grumpy team (and all of the Messina Touring team as always) for helping to make the stars align this holiday season. Also to Danna Clayton for saying "yes" to my crazy last minute request to get on a flight to NYC with less than 24 hours notice. Grateful... humbled.... and more motivated than ever going into 2026. What a way to end the year. #EdSheeran #Music #Ticketing #Concerts #MusicIndustry #Charity