Bruce Springsteen reveals whether he’d enter politics and explains why he won’t write more anti-Trump songs

Springsteen says if he'd run for governor of New Jersey

Bruce Springsteen has discussed whether he would run for office in the future and why he wouldn’t be writing any more anti-Donald Trump songs.

Springsteen recently spoke to Variety when he was asked if he was tempted to run for governor of New Jersey. He replied: “Pssht, nooo. I would have no business in politics. I’m just not interested in policy-making enough. I know people in entertainment who are interested in those things, but I’m a musician.”

Having previously described Trump as a “moron” and released an anti-Trump protest song titled ‘That’s What Makes Us Great’ in April, Springsteen has now said: “I’m not driven to write any anti-Trump diatribe; that doesn’t feel necessary at the moment”. He added: “It feels a little redundant to me”.

Advertisement

Springsteen went on to explain: “I’m ambivalent about… sort of getting on a soapbox. I still believe people fundamentally come to music to be entertained — yes, to address their daily concerns, and yes, also to address political topics, I believe music can do that well. But I still believe fundamentally it’s an affair of the heart. People want you to go deeper than politics, they want you to reach inside to their most personal selves and their deepest struggles with their daily lives and reach that place; that’s the place I’m always trying to reach. I’d never make a record that’s just polemical, I wouldn’t release it if I did. To me, that’s just an abuse of your audience’s good graces.”

Asked why he appeared reluctant to support Hillary Clinton early in the 2016 US election, Springsteen said: “I thought she would have made an excellent president, and I still feel that way.”

Bruce Springsteen recently paid tribute to the late Tom Petty, describing himself as “devastated and heartbroken” over the death of a person he describes as “a long lost brother”.

“Down here on E Street, we’re devastated and heartbroken over the death of Tom Petty. Our hearts go out to his family and bandmates,” Springsteen tweeted. “I’ve always felt a deep kinship with his music. A great songwriter and performer, whenever we saw each other it was like running into a long lost brother. Our world will be a sadder place without him.”

You May Also Like

Advertisement

TRENDING

Advertisement

More Stories