For the 20th year in a row, the Bob Woodruff Foundation and the New York Comedy Festival joined forces to raise money — and laughs — for United States veterans, hosting its annual Stand Up for Heroes benefit on Monday (Nov. 9) with performances from Bruce Springsteen, Alex Warren and more.
Held at the David Geffen Hall at the Lincoln Center in New York City, the 2026 fundraiser continued its tradition of supporting former members of the military by bringing many of them, as well as a number of influential figures and donors, into the same room for a night of songs and comedy. The latter was provided this year by longtime supporter of the cause Jon Stewart alongside Josh Johnson and Hasan Minhaj, while the TikToker-turned-singer behind the Billboard Hot 100 No. 1 hit “Ordinary” and The Resilient — a rock band primarily made up of wounded U.S. combat veterans — led the musical offerings.
As for The Boss? He delivered both. Springsteen — who has been present at almost every SUFH since it began in 2007 — sang an intimate handful of tender acoustic cuts as well as blessed the crowd with numerous naughty witticisms.
By the end of the night, founders Bob and Lee Woodruff revealed that they’d raised $5.9 million through the event alone — a number that more than quintupled when billionaire Craigslist founder Craig Newmark, a longtime SUFH supporter and sponsor, announced that he’d be adding $28 million of his own money to the cause. “I like round numbers,” he said with a shrug, revealing that the donation had brought his lifetime contributions to the foundation to an even $100 million.
“You motherf–kers wouldn’t even raise your paddles for $1,000!” Stewart then quipped good-naturedly to the audience.
Though the night’s full programming was reserved only for the honored guests in attendance with a no-cameras policy, Billboard was on site to capture some of the best moments for those who missed out. Keep reading to see the highlights of the 2026 event championing real-life heroes below.
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A Resilient Opening
There was no one better to open the show than The Resilient. Backed by a troupe of dancers uniformed in jackets and beanies, the band’s song of choice — “Freedom’s Cost,” on which they ask of war, “Is it worth the violence?/ Is it worth the loss?” — felt especially harrowing coming after an introductory video detailing the traumatic moments in combat that left the members with life-altering injuries.
Afterward, lead singer Timothy Donley performed “The Star-Spangled Banner” a cappella, earning cheers as he nailed the sustained high note at the end with forceful vibrato.
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Minhaj for Mamdani
Hasan Minhaj was happy to be in a room full of New Yorkers, where he marveled at the “miracle” of the Knicks winning the 2026 NBA Finals and the city’s mayor being a guy who “looks like me,” in reference to Zohran Mamdani. The mere mention of the progressive politician’s name was enough to earn raucous applause from the audience — but that only stirred up Minhaj’s personal insecurities. “My parents love [Mamdani] more than me,” he joked. “F–k that guy.”
The comedian also boldly riffed on the wealthy-looking, besuited demographic of attendees — who almost definitely got some networking done over drinks at the pre-show reception — seated at the front. “I can feel the LinkedIn energy in this room tonight,” Minhaj ribbed. “You guys laugh like you’re having an all-hands.”
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Alex Warren Grieves Out Loud
Beyond the success of “Ordinary,” Alex Warren has made his name on music that he wrote to process the loss of his parents — something the crowd at Lincoln Center was uniquely poised to relate to. “My brother John is a marine — our mom passed while he was away,” Warren shared before performing “Eternity,” a song he said he wrote to “figure out how to articulate that grief.”
The lyrics hit close to home for many in attendance. “It feels like an eternity/ Since I had you here with me/ Since I had to learn to be/ Someone you don’t know,” the 2026 best new artist Grammy nominee sang. “To be with you in paradise/ What I wouldn’t sacrifice/ Why’d you have to chase the light/ Somewhere I can’t go?”
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Jon Stewart Does a Victory Lap
Jon Stewart walked out onto the stage with the audience already well warmed up — and not just because of the acts who preceded him, but also thanks to the sweeping Democratic victories across the country in the midterm elections six days prior. “Did you have a good week?” he said coyly with a smirk. “Any particular reason you’ve had a good week?”
The Daily Show host then went all in on members of the Republican Party, starting with Mitch McConnell, who he joked has been “dead for six years.“
“Is it that easy to be in the Senate? You can die and still be in the Senate?” Stewart continued, calling bulls–t on the party line that McConnell was simply “dehydrated” back when he was particularly prone to freezing up mid-sentence in 2023. “I’m not a doctor,” he said slowly, straight-faced. “But I’ve been thirsty. It doesn’t look like that.”
Stewart did also poke fun at the other side of the aisle, calling out Democrats for “rationalizing” Joe Biden’s alleged mental decline during his 2024 re-election bid. “The dude was cooked,” he said of the former POTUS while also noting the irony of conservatives who mocked Biden’s state, but still insist that the sitting president is in perfect health. “Trump has a front butt. What are we talking about?”
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The Boss Gets Bawdy
Finally, the time came for Bruce Springsteen to sing — and, as it turned out, deliver a mini-set of raunchy stand-up comedy.
In between moving solo performances of “Hello Sunshine,” “I’ll Work for Your Love” and “Moonlight Motel” — during which he accompanied himself on rustic acoustic guitar, mostly keeping his eyes closed as the music moved through him — he’d deadpan NSFW jokes that sounded almost foreign in his unmistakable, gravelly voice. That said, those who’ve been attending SUFH for as long as he has will remember that The Boss has made a tradition of sharing his lewd humor on stage at the event. It’s a comedy event, after all!
His jokes this year involved dildo shop antics and a cop’s run-in with a “voodoo penis,” as well as this comparatively mild one: “What’s the difference between a woman’s G-spot and a golf ball? Men will actually search for the golf ball.”
Springsteen closed out with an unforgettable rendition of his 1984 smash “Dancing in the Dark,” at one point stepping back from the microphone while continuing to sing so that those belting along in the audience could hear their own voices in unison with his. It transformed the event from fancy benefit to a room of people simply singing together, raw and un-amplified by speakers — a poignant moment of togetherness, especially for those in the crowd who’d undoubtedly danced their way through unimaginable darkness to get to there.