So, how much did Jay-Z raise for the Brooklyn Public Library? Gala grossed $1.5M, little more than the 2022 gala's $1.3M, which had nearly 1/3 go to expenses.
After all, the international superstar is the subject of the "tribute exhibit" The Book of Hov, produced by his company Roc Nation and occupying 40,000 square feet of prominent library space from July through December, with Jay-Z's lyrics plastered over the library's facade.
Surely it would be a few multiples of the previous total, right?
Nope. According to the New York Times, which reported on the gala, the sum was $1.5 million. That's just $200,000 more than the previous year.
Expenses diminish total
It's likely a significant chunk of revenue was diminished by having to throw a very fun party, with gala chairs the library CEO Linda Johnson and her husband, original Atlantic Yards (and Barclays Center) developer Bruce Ratner, as well as Joe and Clara Wu Tsai, who currently owned the Brooklyn Nets, New York Liberty and the Barclays Center operating company.
(See, it's all connected--hence my interest.)
Keep in mind that, while the library in a Summer 2022 newsletter announced that Gala "raised more than $1.3 million to support the Library’s critical programs and resources," it told the Internal Revenue Service, in its Form 990 report (bottom) that the $1.3 million in gross receipts was diminished by more than $425,000 in expenses.
In all, that's 32.5% of the total. I queried the library about the net revenues from this year's gala, but didn't hear back. We'll find out when the Form 990 is filed.
The money's surely needed, but it's a relative fraction of the library's total revenue, likely little more than half of one percent.
The library raised $197.3 million in operating support and revenues in last fiscal year, ending June 30, 2023, including $137.9 million in New York City appropriations, $8.9 million in New York State appropriations, and $9.8 million in contribution income (restricted and not). No "special events" are listed, but one--likely the 125th anniversary gala--was listed for 2022.
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| From Brooklyn Public Library |
The value of buzz
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| Screenshot from New York Times |
That comes on top of the other uncritical publicity about the exhibit, boosting the reputation of the library.
Another gift leveraged
Also note previous mention of a "historic $1.5M gift from the Shawn Carter Foundation in partnership with Robert Kraft’s Foundation to Combat Anti-Semitism and Michael Rubin," which, I suspect, involves far more money--maybe all?--from New England Patriots owner Kraft than from Jay-Z.
That would bring the library's revenues well over 1% of the annual budget.
But it's hard to imagine that Jay-Z and Roc Nation, which gain all that free advertising and mount an exhibit they control, don't benefit far more.
New library visitors--and users?
We know, as the Brooklyn Public Library has enthusiastically reported, that the number of visitors has jumped, thanks to the Jay-Z exhibit, as have sign-ups for the souvenir Jay-Z library cards, which are available to New York State residents only.
What we don't know is whether those new cardholders have translated into commensurate use of library materials.
In July, the library reported that, while the opening week had almost five times the average number of visitors, the number of checkouts during the opening weekend--not the same time frame--at Central and Marcy Libraries increased by nearly 10 percent from the previous weekend.
That's only a modest increase. No statistics have since been released. (I asked, but didn't hear back.) But Johnson recently told a PBS interviewer "Our door count has tripled. Our new library card registrations have doubled."
That's star power. Whether it's enduring change is another question.
That's star power. Whether it's enduring change is another question.
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| From IRS Form 990 for fiscal year ending June 2022 |
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