The Artist Talked a Woman from Jumping off Tennessee Bridge
Jon Bon Jovi talked a woman down from jumping off the Seigenthaler Pedestrian Bridge in downtown Nashville on Tuesday. Bon Jovi and a production team were filming a new music video on the bridge, that was still open to the public at the time, when they noticed the woman heading towards the railing.
The bridges security cameras captured the whole ordeal. The video shows the rock star and an assistant walking along the bridge, which spans the Cumberland River between downtown Nashville and Nissan Stadium and greeting the woman on the ledge. The musician leans against the rail and calmly has a conversation with her.
The woman then turns toward Bon Jovi and the production assistant, and they help her back over the safe side of the railing. Once physically okay, the woman and Bon Jovi face each other, and the Grammy-winning singer hugs her. This unexpected case of being in the right place at the right time prompted Nashville Police Chief John Drake to say in a statement posted on X that “It takes all of us to help keep each other safe.”
“A shout out to @jonbonjovi & his team for helping a woman on the Seigenthaler Ped Bridge Tue night. Bon Jovi helped persuade her to come off the ledge over the Cumberland River to safety,” Metro Nashville PD wrote on X. Police described the woman in the title of the video as “distraught.”
The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame star has declined to share any details of the incident with journalists “out of respect for the private citizen who experienced a moment of crisis.”
Bon Jovi has worked with vulnerable people through his Jon Bon Jovi Soul Foundation, which provides food, affordable housing, job training and social services to people experiencing hunger, poverty and homelessness. Bon Jovi also has had training in speaking to individuals during difficult situations. In February, Bon Jovi was recognized as the MusiCares Person of the Year for his philanthropic efforts.
We really need to support each other as we are all dangling on this rock together. It’s easy to turn your back or let someone else “handle it”. What Jon did was both brave and heroic, but also it is what we should all be striving to do. Sure, we don’t all have the proper training to make this move, but talking to people is easy. Reach out and understand where someone else is coming from. Be patience. Be kind. Show love. We already have enough hate out there.
In 2014, the bridge was named after the legendary Tennessean editor John Seigenthaler, who prevented a man from jumping off the bridge in the 1950s.
Help is available if you or someone you know is struggling with suicidal thoughts or mental health matters. In the US, call or text 988, the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline. Globally, the International Association for Suicide Prevention and Befrienders Worldwide have contact information for crisis centers around the world.
