ACLU 2004 Freedom Concert

Filmmaker and Academy Award winner Sean Penn has been lauded as the best actor of his generation. His stature has helped raise awareness about many issues, recently traveling to Iraq to bring attention to the plight of the Iraqi people.

Playwright Tony Kushner's work deals with moral responsibility during politically repressive times. He received the Pulitzer Prize for Angels in America; his latest plays are Homebody Kabul, and the musical Caroline or Change.

Actor Jake Gyllenhaal has starred in films like Donny Darko and The Good Girl and was one of the featured artists in the ACLU advertising campaign Scrapbook for Freedom. Jake, his sister Maggie and parents Steven Gyllenhaal and Naomi Foner were recently honored by the ACLU.

Maggie Gyllenhaal electrified audiences with her daring performance as Lee Holloway in the independent film Secretary. Maggie, her brother Jake and parents Steven Gyllenhaal and Naomi Foner were recently honored by the ACLU.

Edie Brickell has been telling stories to the backdrop of music since the 1980s. She's back on the scene, and on our stage, with a new album.

Lila Downs performs her own compositions and also taps into the vast reservoir of native mesoamerican music by singing songs in the Indian languages of Mexico. She was prominently featured in the film Frieda.

Jessica Lange has built her acting career portraying strong and independent women, which has earned her six Academy Award nominations and two Oscars.

Playwright, poet, actor and activist, Sarah Jones had rave reviews for her portrayal of 14 characters in her sold out one-woman show Bridge & Tunnel.

Nanci Griffith has spent more than half her life onstage and on tour producing what Rolling Stone described as a unique form of "folkabilly" music.

Mos Def has reshaped the rap-rock genre and emerged as one of the more conscientious voices of new school hip-hop. Hes also established himself as a serious actor in films like Monster's Ball, Bamboozled and had a role in the Pulitzer Prize-winning Broadway show Topdog/Underdog.

The world is comedian Robin Williams' stage -- whether on the small or silver screen or before a live audience.

Paul Simon is one of the great singer/songwriters producing classics in the 1960s with Art Garfunkel and moved into a solo career that incorporates music from around the world.

Lou Reed formed the seminal band The Velvet Underground in 1965 and began his solo career in 1970. He is credited for expanding the vocabulary of rock and roll lyrics into forbidden territories of sex, drugs, decadence, homosexuality and depression.

Philip Glass is producing and will appear at the Freedom Concert. Throughout his 60-year career as musician and composer, he has collaborated with a variety of artists in a range of projects and expanded his repertoire to include music for opera, dance, theater, chamber ensemble, orchestra, and film.

Singer/guitarist Dan Auerbach and drummer Patrick Carney formed The Black Keys in 2002 working in soul, funk and rock influences. Theyre a grassroots operation, taking their sound all over the U.S. with nonstop touring.

Lead Fugees rapper and guitarist, Wyclef Jean, was the first member of the group to go solo, and became, what MTV dubbed "hip-hop's unofficial multicultural conscience." His new album, "Preacher's Son" draws from reggae, blues and jazz.

Patti Smith is considered "a poet whose energy and vision found its voice in the most powerful medium of the culture: rock and roll." Aside from her performing, writings, and recordings, Patti is involved in many social issues and human rights organizations.