Article Contributed by ASHTON-MAGNUSON MEDIA
Published on 2026-10-30
Today, the nonprofit organization Home of the Brave released the first episode in a brand-new limited-run video series called Home of the Brave Backstage, which features frank discussions with some of the nation’s biggest musical acts about the Trump administration, fighting authoritarianism, and the future of our politics. The first episode features Bruce Springsteen and can be watched below.
The show is co-hosted by Ken Casey, frontman of Dropkick Murphys and a vocal, lifelong champion of protecting Americans’ rights from abuses by those in power; former MPD officer Michael Fanone, who defended the U.S. Capitol on January 6; and Sarah Longwell, who serves on Home of the Brave’s advisory board.
In the coming weeks, the organization plans to release episodes featuring legendary singer-songwriter Joan Baez, Public Enemy’s Chuck D, Foo Fighters guitarist Chris Shiflett, and more. Each will focus on the necessity of artists using their platforms to speak out, how ordinary people can fight back, and what participants describe as the consequences of staying silent amid rising authoritarianism. This content was filmed on-site at the Power to the People Festival.
Watch Bruce Springsteen: Why Bruce Springsteen Refuses to Stay Silent | Home of the Brave Backstage
In the opening episode, Bruce Springsteen took the opportunity to speak about this moment in our country’s history and what artists, fans, and everyday people can do to stand up against what he sees as the administration’s cruelty and incompetence.
“America is an incredible place. I mean, I came from absolutely less than nothing. And I watched my parents struggle but build a life for themselves,” Bruce tells Ken. “I just grew up with a deep love and respect for what the country could be. And I believed it was part of my job to show the distance between American reality and the American dream. And to do my best to narrow that gap. That was my job here on planet Earth, if I had one.”
He continues: “If you grew up in the ‘60s, you grew up when music had a voice across the board. It came as part of what felt like your cultural responsibility. If you had a platform, you used it and you used it politically, and that was not controversial at the time. It was expected … So to me, music and politics, on some level, has always been intertwined … It's an expression of freedom.”
Ken Casey is the founding member of Boston's Dropkick Murphys. For 30 years—and on their 2025 For The People album—Dropkick Murphys have stood up for what they believe is right, speaking out against fascism and authoritarianism. The band’s music and actions champion the working class and downtrodden, while carrying hope through powerful melodies and fist-pumping choruses.
Casey has vocalized his strong stances against the Trump administration and his support of immigrant rights, human rights, and workers’ rights in no-holds-barred interviews with The Atlantic, Rolling Stone, Los Angeles Times, The Telegraph, The Beat with Ari Melber, The Daily Show, WGBH – Boston Public Radio, and more.
In addition, the band’s charity, The Claddagh Fund, has raised millions of dollars for community-based nonprofits supporting children, veterans, and alcohol/drug rehabilitation.
When it comes to artists speaking out, Casey said, “It was such a privilege to sit down and talk to such legendary talents and hear about their long history of using their music and their voice to speak up on behalf of the people.”
Home of the Brave exists to show Americans what the organization describes as the real-world consequences of the Trump administration’s policies and to highlight what bravery looks like in defense of American democracy. A 501(c)(4) nonprofit organization, it was founded in 2025 and creates original video content and testimonials from people speaking out against the administration’s actions.
It also operates a Substack newsletter and a podcast, It’s Happening Here, to tell these stories.
Home of the Brave Backstage will serve as a platform for artists to discuss why they’re choosing to speak out, what they hear from people as they travel the country, and what gives them hope for the future.
Because, as Bruce says in the first episode: “You can't succumb to the alternative of hope. You've got to have hope. Without that, we're nothing.”
Watch the full debut episode on YouTube.
