People, get ready... 'cause Bruce Springsteen & the E Street Band sure are!

March 26, 2026

Bruce Springsteen has been busy preparing, performing, and lending public political support in this final full week before he launches his Land of Hope & Dreams American Tour with the E Street Band in Minneapolis next Tuesday. And he's not quite finished with the week just yet...

On Monday night, following several days of tour rehearsals in Ocean Grove, NJ with the E Street Band (but without the tour's special guest Tom Morello, who's been playing some final tour dates of his own before next Tuesday, and - for presumably more disappointing though also fully understandable reasons, of course - without beloved E Street Band member Patti Scialfa,) Springsteen served as a surprise special guest for the 30th-anniversary celebration of the independent news-reporting organization Democracy Now!

Appearing before an audience of about 2000 people (including other special guests like Mosab Abu Toha, Angela Davis, Aaron Dessner, Hurray for the Riff Raff, Patti Smith, Michael Stipe, and V [formerly Eve Ensler]) in New York City's historic Riverside Church, Springsteen spoke, performed a solo-acoustic version of "Streets of Minneapolis," and briefly chatted onstage with founding Democracy Now! journalist Amy Goodman before joining Patti Smith, Aaron Dessner, Hurray for the Riff Raff, Tony Shanahan, Jesse Paris Smith, and Michael Stipe to close out the night with an inspiring singalong version of the classic Patti Smith/Fred "Sonic" Smith song "People Have The Power."

"Hello!," Springsteen exulted as he took the stage after being introduced by Goodman. "Happy anniversary, Democracy Now!, happy anniversary! It's so wonderful to be here, and happy birthday, Patti [Smith, who won't celebrate another birthday until December 30, but Goodman had noted earlier in the evening that Smith will turn 80 this year.] We love you.

"The past winter, federal troops brought death and terror to the streets of Minneapolis. They picked the wrong city, because the power and the solidarity of the people of Minneapolis was an inspiration to the entire country. Their strength and their commitment told us that this is still America, and the reactionary nightmare in the invasion of an American city will not stand. Their strength gave us hope, it gave us courage, and for those who gave their lives... Renee Good, mother of three, brutally murdered... Alex Pretti, V.A. nurse executed, shot in the back by ICE in the street, left to die... their bravery, their sacrifice, and their names will not be forgotten. This is 'Streets of Minneapolis.'"

Embedded below is pro-shot video of the entire evening, cued up to Springsteen's arrival onstage:

After the song, Amy Goodman conducted a mini-interview with Bruce onstage:

Amy Goodman: Bruce, you're taking this on the road across the country, beginning in Minneapolis. Tell us about the tour.

Bruce: [chuckles] Not much to tell. Starting in Minneapolis, and going on to Portland and Los Angeles, of course, to other cities where they had to deal with ICE's terror. And then we're gonna end up in Washington, D.C., with a few words to say in front of The White House. [chuckles]

Amy Goodman: You're saying where ICE is present. Does that mean you're taking it to airports now?

Bruce: [laughs] I've been in plenty of them. Probably so, y'know?

Goodman: One other question...you just made news again this morning: the ACLU (American Civil Liberties Union) launching a national ad-campaign featuring your "Born in the U.S.A." highlighting the landmark birthright citizenship Supreme Court case that they're going to be arguing on April 1st.

Bruce: Right, right... Well, it's our pleasure to be working with the ACLU, and they finally put "Born in the U.S.A." to some good and righteous use, so I'm glad about that. [laughs]

Embedded below are the 60-seconds and 30-seconds versions of the ACLU's ad:

ACLU Executive Director Anthony D. Romero informed Rolling Stone how Sony Music, which now owns all of Bruce Springsteen's music rights after purchasing them in 2021 for approximately $550 million, allowed the ACLU to use "Born in the U.S.A." based on Springsteen's and Jon Landau's enthusiastic approval of the ad-campaign concept. While we still hear justifiably bitter howling and mourning in the full-band rock version's powerful chorus that Romero hears as a "brassy refrain" that "makes you want to stand up straight and feel good about the country you live in, the communities you’re part of, and pay honor to the values that truly make America great," we find much more common ground indeed in this statement from the ACLU's press-release about the ad campaign:

“'Born in the U.S.A.' debuted at a moment of national strain and reflection, telling the story of a Vietnam veteran returning home to economic hardship, neglect, and an America he no longer recognized. The song called on the nation to live up to its ideals. Decades later, as the Supreme Court considers whether to continue to guarantee citizenship at birth, the song resonates in a new constitutional context, drawing renewed attention to what it means, in law and lived experience, to be born in the United States."

It also was announced this week that Springsteen will perform "Streets of Minneapolis" at this Saturday's "No Kings" rally in Minnesota's capital city, St. Paul. He'll be among the famous folks scheduled to speak and/or perform at the St. Paul rally, including Joan Baez, Jane Fonda, Maggie Rogers, and Bernie Sanders. In a Minnesota Star-Tribune interview with Jon Bream published in print yesterday, Bruce discussed the song, the No Kings movement, the tour, and his continued commitment to singing and speaking his heart and mind, even if some folks still take issue with his doing so: "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. And I’m always in search of that... I don’t worry about if you’re going to lose... part of your audience. I’ve always had a feeling about the position we play culturally, and I’m still deeply committed to that idea of the band. The blowback is just part of it. I’m ready for all that... When you’re young, you’re a lot more fragile and you’re not quite sure what you’re doing and who you are and who you want to be. As time passes — I’ve been doing this 60 years — so you do develop a pretty thick skin, and it has served me well. I know who we are, I know the kind of band we are."

And finally there's THIS important message posted online yesterday by Bruce Springsteen & the E Street Band, greeting us from Ocean Grove, NJ, where rehearsing for the tour has continued this week:

"Minneapolis, Portland, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Phoenix, Newark, Sunrise, FL, Austin, Chicago, Atlanta, Belmont, Long Island, Philadelphia, New York, Brooklyn, Pittsburgh, Cleveland, Boston, and Washington, DC, the E Street Band is coming your way, and we are bringing hope over fear, democracy over authoritarianism, the rule of law over lawlessness, ethics over unbridled corruption, unity over division, and peace over WAR!"