Pittsburgh Musician Teams With Bruce Springsteen For Anti-Trump Song
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) -- Pittsburgh rocker Joe Grushecky is once again teaming up with the legendary Bruce Springsteen, but this time, their work may rub some fans the wrong way.
They're collaborating on an anti-Trump song, which was inspired, in part, by Grushecky's work as a special needs teacher.
The song is called "That's What Makes Us Great," which is a play on President Donald Trump's campaign slogan, "Make America Great Again."
Grushecky says he was appalled by the Trump campaign and began writing the song earlier this year.
He played it for Springsteen, and then, via digital emails, they laid down the track.
Grushecky has collaborated with Springsteen many times over the decades. There aren't too many guys that can call on "The Boss" to sing his song.
"I sent him an early copy of it with me singing it. He liked it a lot. I said, 'What do you think? Would you want to sing on it?' He said, 'Yeah, man,'" Grushecky said.
The song holds no punches, with lyrics like "I never put my faith in a con man and his crooks."
"I was horrified. How can you elect this guy president? Besides the overt racism and misogyny," Grushecky said.
Politics is nothing new for Springsteen. He campaigned for President Barack Obama. But Grushecky's never been overtly political, and some of his fans are none too pleased.
"I got some pretty, so far, humorous response. Like, 'You Hollywood liberal,'" Gruskecky says. "Meanwhile, I'm getting up at 4:30 in the morning, going to McKees Rocks to work, so..."
And that's what inspired him, his years of working as a special ed teacher. Then, seeing a clip of then-candidate Trump who some say appeared to be mocking a handicapped reporter.
Trump has denied it, but Grushecky doesn't believe him.
"My very dear uncle had cerebral palsy. My best friend at home had two really severely challenged siblings," Grushecky said.
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In just one day, the song has gotten a lot of buzz. It's being played on Sirius Radio, and it's getting a lot of write-ups in places like Rolling Stone magazine.
You can stream it for $1 at Grushecky.com.