A Bruce Springsteen tribute band has canceled its plans to perform at a Washington gala before Donald Trump’s presidential inauguration.
B Street Band leader Willie Forte said Monday that the decision is based “solely on the respect and gratitude we have for Bruce and the E Street Band.” He told the Associated Press that “this whole thing just got blown out of proportion.”
The group received a ton of criticism after announcing it had signed on to perform before the inauguration.
https://t.co/r3fkbgCPJz To... https://t.co/bX8tgL45Th
— Will Forte (@BStreetBand) January 16, 2017
Forte confirmed the news on Twitter Monday, retweeting the Rolling Stones article.
"We felt that we had to make it known that we didn't want to seem disrespectful, in any way, shape or form, to Bruce and his music and his band," Forte told Rolling Stone.
"I don't want to upset them. We owe everything to him and our gratitude and respect to the band is imperative above all else. It became clear to us that this wasn't working and we just had to do what we thought was the right thing to do and that was to pull out."
Forte is the band's keyboardist, manager, agent and publicist.
Nice guys. Met them. I wouldn't say right or wrong. Up to them. But it's naive to think one can separate Art and Politics. Art IS Politics. https://t.co/yoAtWruY9B
— Stevie Van Zandt (@StevieVanZandt) January 14, 2017
Steven Van Zandt, Springsteen's longtime friend and guitarist tweeted this about the news.
Springsteen has called Trump a “flagrant, toxic narcissist.”
"The republic is under siege by a moron," Springsteen said of Trump in an interview with Rolling Stone. "It's a tragedy for our democracy," he said.
Springsteen performed during Obama’s inaugural in 2009.
--The Associated Press contributed to this report.
WATCH | Bruce Springsteen performs at Obama's 2009 inauguration.
