Rocker Jon Bon Jovi has called himself the “poster boy” for white privilege, adding that he had to be “very careful” while writing his recent single “American Reckoning,” which pays homage to George Floyd and the Black Lives Matter movement.
Jon Bon Jovi spoke to CBS Sunday Morning about the song and the band’s album 2020, saying that the new record is not meant to take political sides. During the interview, the 58-year-old rocker, who once called President Donald Trump an “evil genius,” also offered to atone for his race and economic status.
“If I’m not the poster-boy for what could be described as white privilege, then who is?” he said. “I’m an older, white, affluent celebrity, you know? I got it. So, I had to be very careful, and I ran it by friends and people I didn’t know, who could opine.”
He added: “And they did. I wrote and rewrote and rewrote, and I wanted to make sure that I was adding something to the conversation, but made sure I did my homework.”
Jon Bon Jovi said that 2020 isn’t meant to be a political album.
“Because I’m not taking sides,” he said. “I don’t care about your politics. I care about you just realizing that in a world in which we live, we’re breathing the same air.”
His comments appear to contradict statements he made earlier this year when the rocker said that 2020 would be packed with political fare from gun control to veterans’ issues. As Breitbart News previously reported, the band put out a press release about the album, telling fans the music will tackle “tough topics such as gun control, veterans’ issues, politics, the meaning of family, and much more.”
In 2016, Jon Bon Jovi endorsed Hillary Clinton’s run for the White House, appearing with her at official campaign events.
“American Reckoning,” which was released in July, is a nearly five-minute meditation on George Floyd, whose death while in Minneapolis police custody set off Black Lives Matter riots and protests that continue to plague major cities.
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