Legendary Canadian musician Neil Young wants U.S. President Donald Trump to stop “worrying” about what Bruce Springsteen and other celebrities think of him.
In a post on his website on Tuesday, Young told Trump he should focus on “saving America from the mess you made” instead of feuding with celebrities that have criticized him, like his recent feud with Springsteen.
“What are you worryin’ about man?” Young wrote in the post. “Bruce and thousands of musicians think you are ruining America. You worry about that instead of the dyin’ kids in Gaza. That’s your problem.”
He continued: “I am not scared of you. Neither are the rest of us. You shut down FEMA when we needed it most. That’s your problem Trump. STOP THINKING ABOUT WHAT ROCKERS ARE SAYING.”
Young added that Taylor Swift “is right” and “so is Bruce.” (Swift was a recent subject of one of Trump’s Truth Social posts. He wrote: “Has anyone noticed that, since I said ‘I HATE TAYLOR SWIFT,’ she’s no longer ‘HOT?’”)
“You know how I feel. You are more worried about yourself than AMERICA,” Young added. “Wake up Trump!! Remember what the White House is?”
“86/47?? That’s what you think about? You are forgetting your real job. You work for us. Wake up Republicans! This guy is out of control. We need a real president,” Young concluded his post.
The phrase “86/47” is a reference to a recent social media post made by former FBI director James Comey, who wrote “cool shell formation on my beach walk” under a picture of seashells that appeared to form the shapes for “86 47.”
Numerous Trump administration officials, including Kristi Noem, said Comey was advocating for the assassination of Trump, the 47th president. Merriam-Webster says 86 is slang meaning “to throw out,” “to get rid of” or “to refuse service to,” but colloquially can mean “kill.”
Young’s post comes after Trump escalated his feud with Springsteen over the long weekend, calling for a “major investigation” into the rock legend after Springsteen branded the Trump administration as “corrupt, incompetent and treasonous” during a concert in England last week.
On May 19, Trump took to Truth Social to post a lengthy, all-caps screed against Springsteen and other Hollywood A-listers who endorsed Kamala Harris during last year’s presidential election.
Get breaking National news
For news impacting Canada and around the world, sign up for breaking news alerts delivered directly to you when they happen.
“HOW MUCH DID KAMALA HARRIS PAY BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN FOR HIS POOR PERFORMANCE DURING HER CAMPAIGN FOR PRESIDENT?” Trump wrote online, in a message published in the middle of the night. “WHY DID HE ACCEPT THAT MONEY IF HE IS SUCH A FAN OF HERS? ISN’T THAT A MAJOR AND ILLEGAL CAMPAIGN CONTRIBUTION? WHAT ABOUT BEYONCÉ? … AND HOW MUCH WENT TO OPRAH, AND BONO???”
“I am going to call for a major investigation into this matter. Candidates aren’t allowed to pay for ENDORSEMENTS, which is what Kamala did, under the guise of paying for entertainment,” the president continued in his rant. “In addition, this was a very expensive and desperate effort to artificially build up her sparse crowds. IT’S NOT LEGAL! For these unpatriotic ‘entertainers,’ this was just a CORRUPT & UNLAWFUL way to capitalize on a broken system.”
He didn’t stop there, however. Nearly eight hours later, he returned to the subject.
“According to news reports, Beyoncé was paid $11,000,000 to walk onto a stage, quickly ENDORSE KAMALA, and walk off to loud booing for never having performed, NOT EVEN ONE SONG!” he wrote.
“Remember, the Democrats and Kamala illegally paid her millions of Dollars for doing nothing other than giving Kamala a full throated ENDORSEMENT.
Switching back to all-caps, he concluded: “THIS IS AN ILLEGAL ELECTION SCAM AT THE HIGHEST LEVEL! IT IS AN ILLEGAL CAMPAIGN CONTRIBUTION! BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN, OPRAH, BONO AND, PERHAPS, MANY OTHERS, HAVE A LOT OF EXPLAINING TO DO!!!”
Springsteen, a longtime opponent of the president, stood up as one of Trump’s most prominent cultural critics last week with a verbal takedown from a British stage.
He told a Manchester audience that he believes Trump is “unfit” for the Oval Office.
While introducing his and the E Street Band’s song Land of Hopes and Dreams, after which his current tour is named, the 75-year-old Springsteen said, “In my home, the America I love, the America I’ve written about, that has been a beacon of hope and liberty for 250 years, is currently in the hands of a corrupt, incompetent and treasonous administration.”
“The last check on power after the checks and balances of government have failed are the people, you and me. It’s in the union of people around a common set of values now — that’s all that stands between a democracy and authoritarianism. So at the end of the day, all we’ve got is each other,” Springsteen continued later in the show.
The next morning, Trump called Springsteen highly overrated. “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,” he wrote on social media.
“This dried out prune of a rocker (his skin is all atrophied) ought to KEEP HIS MOUTH SHUT until he gets back in the Country,” he said.
The next night, also in Manchester, Springsteen repeated his criticisms.
As for Young, this isn’t the first time the Heart of Gold singer has spoken out against Trump.
In early April, Young voiced concern that he may not be allowed to re-enter the United States after his upcoming European tour due to his criticism of Trump.
Young spoke out about his fears in a post on his Neil Young Archives website.
“When I go to play music in Europe, if I talk about Donald J. Trump, I may be one of those returning to America who is barred or put in jail to sleep on a cement floor with an aluminum blanket,” the folk-rock icon wrote.
“If I come back from Europe and am barred, can’t play my USA tour, all of the folks who bought tickets will not be able to come to a concert by me,” he added. “That’s right folks, if you say anything bad about Trump or his administration, you may be barred from re-entering USA. If you are Canadian. If you are a dual citizen like me, who knows? We’ll all find that out together.”
As Young has done many times in the past, he did not hold back about his feelings on Trump in his post, writing, “If the fact that I think Donald Trump is the worst president in the history of our great country could stop me from coming back, what does that say for Freedom? I love America and its people and its music and its culture. … Remember Freedom of Speech?”
— With files from Global News’ Michelle Butterfield and The Associated Press
