The American Heart Association's Red Dress Collection Concert, hosted by actress Laura Linney with performances by Nicole Scherzinger and Amy Grant, officially marked the start of American Heart Month in New York City. The event serves as the national marquee event for the Go Red for Women movement, which aims to combat heart disease as women's number one killer. According to the American Heart Association, more than 4 in 10 women in the U.S. have some form of cardiovascular disease, including heart disease and stroke, with this figure expected to grow.
Linney, wearing Rubin Singer, opened the show by highlighting the complexities of heart health and its impact on families while advocating to make women's heart health more visible and personal. The concert builds on the two-decade tradition of the Red Dress Collection fashion show founded by the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute's The Heart Truth program, now incorporating musical performances and personal stories from those affected by cardiovascular disease.
Grammy Award-winning singer-songwriter Amy Grant, wearing Tadashi Shoji on the red carpet and Maison Tai for her performance, received the Woman Changing the World award from American Heart Association CEO Nancy Brown. Born with a congenital heart defect and having undergone open heart surgery in 2020, Grant has become a powerful advocate for heart health, sharing her personal story to inspire women to prioritize their well-being through public service announcements and national campaigns.
Grammy-nominated, Tony Award-winning performer Nicole Scherzinger headlined the concert, wearing Nicole + Felicia on the red carpet, DO LONG on the runway, and Jenny Packham for the show. The event also featured a fashion runway with stars including Uzo Aduba, Chlöe Bailey, Selma Blair, Renée Elise Goldsberry, Normani, and Jane Seymour wearing red ensembles from various designers, maintaining the event's origins in fashion awareness.
CVS Health serves as a proud national sponsor of the Go Red for Women movement, having directed more than $50 million over the past decade to advance women's cardiovascular health, strengthen blood pressure management, and support lifesaving research and education. The concert is additionally supported by Chase. Resources for women's heart health are available at GoRedforWomen.org, with information about National Wear Red Day at WearRedDay.org.
This annual event underscores the critical importance of addressing cardiovascular disease in women, which claims the lives of 1 in 3 women despite most cardiac events being preventable. The combination of celebrity influence, fashion, and personal storytelling creates a powerful platform for raising awareness and driving action toward improving heart health outcomes for women nationwide.
