Bruce Springsteen has poured cold water on the notion that he is a billionaire, saying 10-figure estimates of his net worth are “real wrong.”
Outlets like Forbes have estimated The Boss is worth $1.2 billion—owing to his vast catalog of studio and live albums, which he sold to Sony in 2021 for $500 million.
But the New Jersey native has set the record straight, bluntly telling media: “I’m not a billionaire.”
“I wish I was, but they got that real wrong,” Springsteen told The Telegraph in a recent interview. “I’ve spent too much money on superfluous things.”
The 75-year-old rock ‘n roll legend released his first studio album—Greetings from Ashbury Park, N.J.—more than 50 years ago and has been touring ever since.
He wants to enjoy the fruits of his labor, adding people should enjoy their “good fortune” because after all, “you put the work in.”
But the father of three said he’s never let the finer things in life distract him from the bigger picture, adding: “That’s usually where people go south.”
Protecting his talent was key to ensuring that didn’t happen, he added: “If I had failed at that, I would have failed at everything, in my opinion.”
‘Superfluous’ spending
What Springsteen would class as a “superfluous” spend isn’t clear—but his philanthropic and charitable spending is well-documented.
Earlier this year it emerged that the rocker donated $20,000—the equivalent of more than $58,000 in 2024 currency—to support miners in the north of England in the 1980s, who were on strike at the time.
Springsteen handed two miners’ wives—Juliana Heron and Anne Suddick—the check at a gig in Newcastle in 1985, without any publicity.
“He just said ‘I truly support what the miners are doing for their communities, I want to present you with this cheque’,” Mrs Heron told the BBC earlier this year.
A year prior Springsteen and his wife, Patti Scialfa, donated $100,000 to the restoration of the The Turf Club—a music venue dating back to the 1960s—in Asbury Park, where the musician grew up.
Indeed the ‘Born in the USA’ singer-songwriter has stayed close to his roots, and in 2019 gave fans some insight into his home life.
Springsteen shows CBS’s Gayle King around his home studio in Jersey, where he has recorded the majority of his music over the past 15 years.
A portion of Springsteen’s wealth also apparently goes to keeping livestock, as he showed King his pet pigs and horses.
Springsteen and politics
The frontman known for his tours alongside the E Street Band is also forthcoming about his political inclination.
Springsteen was a staunch supporter of President Obama, frequently headlining concerts and appearing at rallies for the former Democratic commander-in-chief.
Whether or not Springsteen donates to Democratic nominees isn’t known, but the Thunder Road singer has come out in support of Harris in the upcoming presidential election.
He told The Telegraph this month he’s “not that anxious” about the outcome of the White House race because he believes Harris will win, though added: “Of course, I’ve been wrong before about this.”
Springsteen continued: “In the States, there’s an enormous anxiety, however, at losing the things that are dearest to us, the danger of losing democracy, rule of law, peaceful transfer of power. And this is a guy who is committed to none of these things.
“He’s an insurrectionist. You know, he led a coup on the United States government, so there’s no way he should be let anywhere near the office of the presidency.”
