Bruce Springsteen has declared his forthcoming "Land of Hope & Dreams American Tour" will be explicitly political, tackling the current state of affairs in the United States head-on.
The veteran rock star, now 76, confirmed to the Minnesota Star Tribune that "the tour is going to be political and very topical about what's going on in the country".
Minneapolis will serve as the launching point when the tour begins on 31 March, a deliberate choice given Mr Springsteen's recent involvement with the city following controversial ICE operations there.
The star is set to start his latest tour
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"The E Street Band is built for hard times. It always was," Mr Springsteen explained. "These are the moments when I think we can be of real value and real worth to the community.
"These are moments that fill the band with purpose, so I try to fill the set list around those ideas."
When asked whether his outspoken opposition to Donald Trump might drive away portions of his audience, Mr Springsteen remained unfazed.
"I don't worry about it," he told the Minnesota Star Tribune. "My job is very simple: I do what I want to do, I say what I want to say and then people get to say what they want to say about it. Those are the rules of my game. That's fine with me."
The singer will reveal his political views on stage
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The musician made clear he has no intention of tempering his message to preserve ticket sales.
"I don't worry about if you're going to lose this part of your audience. I've always had a feeling about the position we play culturally, and I'm still deeply committed to that idea of the band.
"The blowback is just part of it. I'm ready for all that."
The White House has responded to Mr Springsteen's political stance with pointed criticism. Spokesman Steven Cheung dismissed the musician as a "loser" in a statement laden with references to his song titles.
Mr Springsteen will also cover the ongoing incidents involving ICE
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"When this loser Springsteen comes back home to his own City of Ruins in his head, he'll realise his Glory Days are behind him.
"His fans have left him Out in the Street, putting him in a Tenth Avenue Freeze-Out because he has a severe case of Trump Derangement Syndrome that has rotted his brain," Cheung stated.
The administration's attack follows Mr Springsteen's release of "Streets of Minneapolis" in January, a protest track written after US citizens Renee Good and Alex Pretti were fatally shot by federal ICE agents in the city. The song directly targets Trump, describing ICE as "Trump's private army."
The tour will take Mr Springsteen and the E Street Band through numerous major American cities, including Los Angeles, San Francisco, Phoenix, Austin, Chicago, Atlanta, New York City and Boston, before concluding in Washington DC on 27 May.
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The singer has already shared his opposing views to Donald Trump
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In a video shared on social media this week, Mr Springsteen outlined the tour's ethos: "We are bringing hope over fear, democracy over authoritarianism, the rule of law over lawlessness, ethics over unbridled corruption, unity over division and peace over war."
Former Rage Against the Machine guitarist Tom Morello has been confirmed to appear alongside Mr Springsteen at every date on the tour.
Prior to the tour's launch, Mr Springsteen will perform at a No Kings rally in St Paul on Saturday, where he will be joined by Joan Baez, Maggie Rogers and Jane Fonda.
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