The New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival announced Tuesday that Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band will join its lineup, and University students who know of Springsteen’s music are excited about the new addition.
“My parents played a lot of Bruce Springsteen when I was little, so I guess I find it nostalgic,” said Michelle Limbaugh, biology and French sophomore.
Limbaugh said she is more excited, however, for younger artists like Florence + the Machine and John Mayer.
Most of Springsteen’s hits were released before some students were born, which explains why a number of students aren’t familiar with the rock legend.
“I couldn’t tell you one song he sings,” said Alex Galliano, biology senior.
Physics senior Clint Reaux said he had never heard of Springsteen.
Though the 62-year-old singer-songwriter might attract fans who are the same age as students’ parents, mechanical engineering junior Mark Luby said it doesn’t bother him.
“I’d probably be more concerned about me bothering them,” Luby said.
Fans can hope to hear legendary hits like “Born in the U.S.A.” and “Dancing in the Dark” alongside songs from his newest album, “Wrecking Ball,” which will be released March 6.
Springsteen has already released a single from his seventeenth album, titled “We Take Care of Our Own,” which acknowledges New Orleans’ recovery from Hurricane Katrina. The last time he performed for Jazz Fest was 2006, just months after the storm hit.
“The last time he walked on that stage, this was a city in ruins,” Jazz Fest producer Quint Davis told The Associated Press. “Now this is a city that’s alive. It’s a city of triumph.”
Springsteen will close the event’s first weekend on April 29. Jazz Fest also announced that rapper Mystikal and Eddie Vedder, lead singer for the rock band Pearl Jam, will take stage the next weekend on May 3. Vedder will be performing solo despite Pearl Jam’s 20th anniversary in September.
Springsteen and Vedder will join the Eagles, Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, Foo Fighters, The Beach Boys, Zac Brown Band, Ne-Yo, Feist, My Morning Jacket, Iron & Wine and hundreds of other performers at the music festival.
 
 
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Contact Danielle Kelley at [email protected]