A New Jersey news outlet has accused rock legend Bruce Springsteen of hypocritically profiteering from an expensive anti-Trump concert in his home state while portraying himself as a “populist” rocker.
NJ.com published an article Tuesday saying, “Springsteen’s New Jersey concert poisoned by hypocrisy. Last anti-Trump act is a tragic mistake.”
Since starting his tour in Minneapolis on March 31, the 76-year-old Springsteen has repeatedly lashed out at President Donald Trump during his shows, calling the administration “corrupt, incompetent, racist, reckless and a traitor” and deriding the 79-year-old as “a president who can’t handle the truth,” among other insults.
The article said the musician opened his show in New Jersey with the same brazen preface.
During his performance in Newark, Springsteen urged the audience to “choose hope over fear, democracy over authoritarianism, the rule of law over lawlessness, ethics over unchecked corruption, resistance over complacency, truth over lies, unity over division, and peace over war.”
Springsteen remains an American icon known for anthems like “Born to Run,” “Thunder Road” and “Born in the USA,” and he hasn’t been shy about sharing his political views over the past few decades.
The musician campaigned for Vice President Kamala Harris in 2024, candidate Joe Biden in 2020, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in 2016, and former President Barack Obama in 2012 and 2008.
“There’s one problem: It’s all hypocritical crap,” the article says. “Profiteering over legitimate protest. Springsteen’s artistic identity as a bleeding-heart populist who sings for the poor and downtrodden has never been more disconnected from his financial actions as a touring activist and businessman.”
“The blue-collar troubadour is now charging exorbitant amounts for tickets. The best seats in Newark on Monday retail for up to $2,900, a price he agreed to despite fan backlash. He’s selling ‘No Kings’ branded flags for $90 in the arena’s concourse.”
Springsteen’s home state news agency claimed that his experience in 2026 was unrecognizable and suggested the tour’s “political framework” exploited divisions within the United States, a contradiction that threatened to taint his career.
The article cited other musicians’ expensive tickets and dismissed critics by claiming that other musical superstars “didn’t build their brands by showing themselves off like cavalry marching to the banks to rescue democracy from the clutches of fat cat bureaucrats. None of them spent their careers on stage as agents of moral witness, none of them performed well enough to preach to their disciples in the name of all goodness and justice.”
The columnist also said that while the music itself was great, “to frame it now as some sort of protest movement priced beyond the reach of most people is not the tradition or heights it pretends to be. This is a hollow monetization of a difficult period in American history and a serious stain on a storied career.”
Fox News Digital reached out to Springsteen’s representatives but did not immediately receive a response.
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