Bruce Springsteen covers band have concert cancelled due to Donald Trump feud
The Bruce Springsteen covers band, No Surrender, have had a concert cancelled in New Jersey following remarks made by ‘The Boss’ about President Donald Trump.
The nine-piece rock outfit has been operating for over twenty years and specialises in playing material from Springsteen’s extensive back catalogue. No Surrender was due to bring their show to Riv’s Toms River Hub in Toms River, Jersey Shore, on May 30th, but it will no longer go ahead due to Springsteen’s feud with Trump.
According to NJ.com, No Surrender’s Brad Hobicorn began to receive worrying messages from venue owner Tony Rivoli regarding their upcoming performance shortly after Springsteen’s anti-Trump tirade at Manchester’s Co-op Live on May 14th.
As the feud escalated, on May 18th, Rivoli told Hobicorn it was “too risky at the moment” for a Springsteen covers band to perform due to his conservative customer base.
In response, No Surrender claims they offered to play a set that didn’t contain any Springsteen material, but Rivoli wasn’t prepared to pay them the same $2,500 fee to do so.
Rivoli reportedly text Hobicorn: “Unfortunately it’s just too much money I wanted to do the Springsteen tribute for that money in my social media team would have promoted it we would have done well but now because Bruce can’t keep his mouth shut we’re screwed.”
He also allegedly wrote in a separate message to their bassist Guy Fleming: “Whenever the national anthem plays, my bar stands and is in total silence, that’s our clientele. Toms River is red and won’t stand for his bullshit.”
Despite the gig being booked months ago, No Surrender will now miss out on being paid due to the cancellation. “This is not political for us at all,” Hobicorn said. “We’re just a cover band that’s trying to make some money and people rely on it financially. We’re the ones really getting hurt”.
The intense feud began when Springsteen criticised Trump during his show at Manchester’s Co-op Live on May 14th, telling the crowd, “In my home, the America I love, the America I’ve written about, and has been a beacon of hope and liberty for 250 years, is currently in the hands of a corrupt, incompetent, and treasonous administration.”
Trump then responded by writing on Truth Social, “Never liked him, never liked his music, or his Radical Left Politics and, importantly, he’s not a talented guy — Just a pushy, obnoxious JERK”.
The US President has since promised to lead a “major investigation” into whether Springsteen was paid by the Democratic Party to perform at rallies ahead of the election last year.
Never Miss A Beat
The Far Out Music Newsletter
All the latest music news from the independent voice of culture.
Straight to your inbox.