Journey rocker slams Bruce Springsteen as ‘annoying, bitter old man’ for political rants at concerts - New York Post

See more of our coverage in your search results. Add The New York Post on Google Journey rockstar Jonathan Cain ripped fellow musician Bruce Springsteen as an “annoying, bitter old man” for using his concerts to lecture fans about President Trump. “I used to be a Democrat back in the old days, but I just couldn’t go there anymore, you know?” Cain, 76, opined in an appearance on the “Complete Disaster Network” podcast, according to Variety. “I’m a diehard conservative… And guys like Bruce Springsteen should shut up. You know, really, honestly, shut up, Bruce, you know? Him and who’s the other one? Robert DeNiro. I mean, who cares, guys?… Do your art. I try to keep politics out of my music,” said the “Don’t Stop Believin'” musician during the May interview. The 76-year-old “Born to Run” rocker blasted the Trump administration as “reckless and treasonous” as he kicked off “Land of Hope & Dreams American Tour” in Minnesota earlier this year. “We are living through some very dark times,” Springsteen claimed to the sold-out Target Center audience in March. “Our American values that have sustained us for 250 years are being challenged as never before. We’ve got our young men and women’s lives at risk in an unconstitutional and illegal war.” Cain said that concerts are not a stage for political grandstanding on either side of the aisle — and even claimed that Springsteen’s 1984 hit “Born in the USA” is a “diss” toward America. “Now, people say, ‘Well, you’re a Christian, and you’re conservative,’ and I’m like, ‘So what?’ I don’t preach it on stage… I don’t spend 10 minutes y’know talking about it… And Bruce, I mean, what the heck? I used to like him, and now he’s just annoying. He’s an annoying, bitter old man. I mean, stop it. Really. “You were born in the USA, weren’t you, dude? So act like it… But even that song, if you look at the lyrics, I mean, it’s a kind of a diss to our country.” Cain added that “unifying people” should be the chief goal for artists, cutting through political differences instead of further dividing them. “Paul McCartney said, ‘Hey, when I sing ‘Hey Jude,’ Democrats and Republicans all sing together.’ And I feel the same way with Journey,” he said. “We have our parties out there in the audience, respective parties, and they’re singing ‘Don’t Stop Believin,'” he added. Cain spoke about his recent single, “Winds of Freedom,” saying he is releasing it because he is a “diehard patriot” before comparing himself to his “friend” Kid Rock.  “We’re a couple of patriots… We love our flag, and we love our nation, and we grew up that way,” he added. Cain’s comments came after Rolling Stones singer Mick Jagger said he preferred to avoid political topics to offer his audience escapism. “The bottom line of my thing really is that my job in the live music world is those people that come is to have the best time they possibly can,” the 82-year-old told the New York Times’ David Marchese on a podcast earlier this month. “For two hours, or whatever it is, to forget all their problems and the problems of the world and their mortgages and whatever, just to give them the best time they can have,” the Rolling Stones frontman said. “You don’t want to lecture them.” Springsteen’s representatives did not respond immediately to requests for comment.