Jesse Israel - The Art of Keeping it Real To Build Community and Lead People

What's the Big Idea with Andrew Horn

Jesse is a social entrepreneur, community builder and meditation teacher on a mission to light up the leader in everyone. As a sophomore at NYU Jesse co-founded Cantora Records, where he signed multi-platinum bands like MGMT, advised The Wu Tang Clan’s GZA and spearheaded the label’s tech investment fund. After experiencing debilitating anxiety and panic attacks, Jesse discovered meditation. The practice was so transformative for him that he went on to found The Big Quiet - a movement that gathers thousands of people for mass meditations at legendary locations like Madison Square Garden and the top of the World Trade Center, and features performances from some of today’s most iconic musicians. Jesse speaks about community building and mindful leadership at organizations like Adidas, Ford, Google and Parson’s School of Design, and teaches meditation to next-generation leaders from around the world. Jesse’s work has been featured in the New York Times, Vice, Vogue, Fast Company, WIRED and the Wall Street Journal.