RUN-DMC Co-Founder DARRYL MCDANIELS to be Honored w/ 'Garden of Dreams' Hero Award

The Garden of Dreams Foundation announced today that legendary artist and Garden of Dreams Foundation board member, Darryl McDaniels, is the recipient of the 2014 Garden of Dreams Hero Award. Established in 2009, the Hero Award honors one person or organization annually that embodies the spirit of the Garden of Dreams Foundation through an active and ongoing dedication to positively impacting the lives of children facing obstacles, while serving as a driving force and inspiration for others.

Darryl exemplifies these values with his extraordinary commitment to several children's organizations including the Garden of Dreams Foundation, which he joined in 2010. Darryl's tireless involvement in a number of the Foundation's programs has created joy for hundreds of children. This includes his important contribution to one of the Foundation's signature events -- the Garden of Dreams Talent Show. In 2012, after taking part in the show in 2009, 2010 and 2011, Darryl was named the show's Creative Director and since then has participated in numerous auditions and rehearsals, inspiring hundreds of talented children to pursue their dreams.

"We are honored to present the 2014 Hero Award to Darryl, who exemplifies what the Garden of Dreams stands for with his enthusiastic dedication to brightening the lives of children," said Hank Ratner, Chairman of the Board, Garden of Dreams Foundation. "The Garden of Dreams Talent Show is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for the more than 100 children that participate and as the Creative Director of the Talent Show, Darryl motivates and supports children facing enormous obstacles to live their dream of performing on the Great Stage at Radio City. His personal commitment to Garden of Dreams is an inspiration to us all and we thank him for being such an outstanding representative for the Foundation."

Past recipients of the Garden of Dreams Hero Award include New York Rangers goaltender Henrik Lundqvist, tennis legend Andre Agassi and Rangers great Adam Graves.

"I am honored to have been chosen to receive the Garden of Dreams Hero Award," said McDaniels. "But this really isn't about me; it's about the kids who inspire me each and every day. I am lucky to be able to work one-on-one with such talented, strong individuals. I can't wait to see the incredible performances at this year's show and look forward to another remarkable and uplifting evening."

Since its inception in 2006, Garden of Dreams has worked closely with all areas of The Madison Square Garden Company, including the New York Knicks, Rangers, Liberty, MSG Media and MSG Entertainment, to create thousands of unique and memorable experiences, including 500 events in the past year alone, to brighten the lives of more than 250,000 tri-state area children and their families.

Garden of Dreams strives to be heroic, inspirational and unforgettable - all attributes of the children the Foundation has had the privilege to meet over the course of its history. Partnering with a diverse collection of outstanding children's related organizations, including hospitals, foster organizations, homeless shelters and "wish" organizations, the Garden of Dreams Foundation has a singular goal each and every day - to utilize the power and magic of The Madison Square Garden Company and its properties to bring joy and happiness to children facing obstacles - whether they relate to illness, homelessness, poverty, foster care issues or tragedy.

The 2014 Garden of Dreams Hero Award will be presented to McDaniels at the Talent Show on Tuesday, June 17, 2014 at Radio City Music Hall. This year's Talent Show will feature more than 100 children from 14 Garden of Dreams partner organizations. For one memorable evening in front of their family and friends, the children, ages 6-18, will perform with emotion and passion, forgetting their problems and celebrating their unique voices and talents.

For more information on the Garden of Dreams Foundation, the programs it run, and the children it serves, please visit www.GardenofDreamsFoundation.org

About The Garden of Dreams Foundation

The Garden of Dreams Foundation is a 501(c)(3) non-profit charity that works with The Madison Square Garden Company (MSG) to positively impact the lives of children facing obstacles. Through ongoing programs that use the magic of MSG - including the Knicks, the Rangers, the Liberty, MSG Entertainment and MSG Networks - the Foundation develops strong, long-term relationships that truly change lives. Since its inception in September 2006, Garden of Dreams has created thousands of once-in-a-lifetime experiences that have brought joy and happiness to more than 250,000 children and their families, including those facing homelessness, extreme poverty, illness and foster care.

About The Madison Square Garden Company

The Madison Square Garden Company is a fully-integrated sports, media and entertainment business. The Company is comprised of three business segments: MSG Sports, MSG Media and MSG Entertainment, which are strategically aligned to work together to drive the Company's overall business, which is built on a foundation of iconic venues and compelling content that the company creates, produces, presents and/or distributes through its programming networks and other media assets. MSG Sports owns and operates the following sports franchises: the New York Knicks (NBA), the New York Rangers (NHL), the New York Liberty (WNBA), the Hartford Wolf Pack (AHL) and the Westchester Knicks (NBADL).

MSG Sports also features the presentation of a wide variety of live sporting events including professional boxing, college basketball, bull riding and tennis. MSG Media is a leader in production and content development for multiple distribution platforms, including content originating from the Company's venues. MSG Media's television networks consist of regional sports networks, MSG Network and MSG+, collectively referred to as MSG Networks, and Fuse, a national television network dedicated to music. MSG Entertainment is one of the country's leaders in live entertainment. MSG Entertainment creates, produces and/or presents a variety of live productions, including the Radio City Christmas Spectacular featuring the Rockettes. MSG Entertainment also presents or hosts other live entertainment events such as concerts, family shows and special events in the Company's diverse collection of venues. These venues consist of Madison Square Garden, The Theater at Madison Square Garden, Radio City Music Hall, the Beacon Theatre, the Forum in Inglewood, CA, The Chicago Theatre, and the Wang Theatre in Boston, MA. More information is available at www.themadisonsquaregardencompany.com.

About Darryl McDaniels

Darryl "DMC" McDaniels is a legendary Grammy nominated music icon who, as a co-founder of Run-DMC, first impacted the world over 30 years ago. From the first rap group to grace the cover of Rolling Stone to the first to appear on MTV, he changed music, culture, fashion, language and made American history. It would be hard to overstate his influence on popular culture.30 million record sales later, and more than ten years after the untimely death of his bandmate Jam Master Jay, DMC still continues to create, inspire and motivate. In 2009 as a member of Run-DMC, he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. He just launched a comic book company called Darryl Makes Comics, a new journey that will bridge the gap between the worlds of hip-hop and the fantastic adventures he got wrapped up in as a youth. He is the co-author of the critically acclaimed autobiography, King of Rock; Respect, Responsibility and My Life with Run-DMC (St. Martins) and the award winning solo album Checks, Thugs & Rock and Roll.

That album featured the hit single "Just like Me" with Sarah McLachlan, a song DMC wrote after discovering he was adopted, that spoke to his new revelation and began his journey down another life path, in search of his birth mother. While his search struggle was captured in the 2007 Emmy Winning VH1 documentary DMC: My Adoption Journey, the process gave DMC tremendous insight and purpose, prompting him to become an advocate for adoption and children in foster care. In between his work as a musician, published author and speaker, DMC co-founded the Felix Organization- a nonprofit that works with adoptees and foster children. In between his graphic novel adventures and his philanthropic work he is performing/recording with his band, Darryl's Music Company, in preparation of a new album to be released in 2015. www.thekingdmc.com

Photo Credit: www.facebook.com/DarrylDMCMcDaniels