Bruce Springsteen will be performing at the March 28 No Kings rally in St. Paul, Minnesota this weekend.
The rocker will kick off his Land of Hope and Dreams American Tour on Tuesday in Minneapolis, but he’s arriving in the area a bit early to perform at the Minnesota State Capitol.
“You want to try to meet the moment,” Springsteen told the Minnesota Star Tribune. “The No Kings movement is of great import right now.”
Springsteen confirmed that he will sing his new song, “Streets of Minneapolis,” which he wrote and released on January 30, “in response to the state terror being visited on the city of Minneapolis,” he said.
“It’s dedicated to the people of Minneapolis, our innocent immigrant neighbors, and in memory of Alex Pretti and Renee Good,” Springsteen said in a statement upon the song’s release.
Within just two days of being released, the song debuted as the highest-selling track in the United States for the week, topping Billboard’s charts as the most-downloaded song.
Now, he’ll be bringing it to the very communities it was written for.
“When you have the opportunity to sing something where the timing is essential, and if you have something powerful to sing, it elevates the moment, it elevates your job to another level,” he told the Star-Tribune. “And I’m always in search of that.”
Springsteen has also just made headlines for his support of a recent ad campaign by the American Civil Liberties Union, which was released ahead of the ACLU’s April 1 arguments before the U.S. Supreme Court on a landmark case challenging America’s constitutional right to birthright citizenship.
The campaign features Springsteen’s “Born in the U.S.A.,” which the singer authorized the use of for the ACLU’s purposes.
“Born in the U.S.A.” is the perfect song to capture what’s at stake in this Supreme Court case and how birthright citizenship is integral to America,” ACLU executive director Anthony D. Romero told Rolling Stone.
“It’s a song that tells the story of a Vietnam veteran returning home to an America he knew was neglecting its people. The song calls on our nation to live up to its ideals. And when you listen to it, it makes you feel proud to be an American.”
Springsteen will join what organizers anticipate to be at least 9 million people participating in No Kings events across the country. The St. Paul rally will also feature appearances from Sen. Bernie Sanders, Jane Fonda, and singers Joan Baez and Maggie Rogers.
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Header image by Pam Springsteen
