The Boss sets the record straight on his finances and shares insights on staying true to his music and his band
Bruce Springsteen, the iconic rock musician behind “Born in the USA,” recently addressed rumors about his finances, dispelling the notion that he’s reached billionaire status. The 75-year-old artist was listed in a July Forbes report, which estimated his net worth at $1.1 billion, but Springsteen claims the assessment is “real wrong.”
“I’m not a billionaire,” Springsteen told The Telegraph. “I wish I was, but they got that real wrong. I’ve spent too much money on superfluous things.” He added that, after a long struggle to achieve success, “you want to enjoy your good fortune” as a reward for “putting in the work.” But his success has never been financially driven.
Springsteen’s 2023 world tour raked in $380 million, according to Pollstar, and his decision to sell his music catalog to Sony for $500 million in 2021 fueled the Forbes billionaire assumption. However, his wealth hasn’t been about amassing a fortune. “Money was never the motive,” Springsteen explained, emphasizing that his focus has always been on protecting his talent and passion. “If I had failed at that, I would have failed at everything, in my opinion.”
Springsteen’s properties in Wellington, Florida, and Beverly Hills are estimated at around $15 million. He has also invested heavily in his 368-acre New Jersey ranch, which he bought in 1994 and uses as his primary home. In 2017, he sold his former 6,000-square-foot estate in Rumson, New Jersey, for $3.2 million. These investments reflect his appreciation for personal comfort and space rather than financial ambition.
A large part of Springsteen’s legacy is his commitment to his band, the E Street Band. “I pay them a tremendous amount of money,” he said at the London premiere of Road Diary: Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band, his new documentary, where he praised his “fantastic team.”
That generosity, he admitted, “greases the wheels pretty good.” But for Springsteen, being a good boss goes beyond paychecks. “You need to cast your band well. If you get the art right, the music right, and the band right, you go out and play every night like it’s your last night on Earth.”
Steven Van Zandt, Springsteen’s long-time guitarist, echoed these sentiments at the London screening. “It was never a commercial enterprise,” Van Zandt stated. “This has been an artistic adventure from the beginning.”
Springsteen and the E Street Band hit blockbuster fame with their 1984 album and tour Born in the USA. Today, they are one of the few bands who have defied the odds and stayed together for over four decades. Reflecting on this achievement, Springsteen noted, “The actual arc of rock ’n’ roll bands is to break up… Think about it, how many bands have stayed together against how many who broke up?”
With enduring success that spans more than 40 years, Springsteen remains a symbol of commitment to art over financial reward, a philosophy that has solidified his place not just as a musician, but as a true artist dedicated to his craft and his team. As he said, “We’re sticking to it.”
