Springsteen, Matthews Headline Anti-Trump Festival Tied to $21.8 Million in Nonprofit Partners
Updated
Updated · Fox News · Oct 3
Springsteen, Matthews Headline Anti-Trump Festival Tied to $21.8 Million in Nonprofit Partners
3 articles · Updated · Fox News · Oct 3
Summary
Bruce Springsteen and Dave Matthews topped Saturday’s “Power To The People” festival in Columbia, Maryland, where organizers mixed concerts with voter registration, activist organizing and fundraising aimed at mobilizing opposition to President Donald Trump before the midterms.
The event’s “Freedom Village” featured groups including Indivisible, Third Act and the ACLU, while proceeds were directed to HeadCount and VoteRiders, nonprofits whose latest tax filings show about $14 million and $7.8 million in revenue.
Onstage messaging was explicitly political: opening act The Neighborhood Kids led “Free Palestine” chants, denounced ICE and urged “power to the people,” while organizer Tom Morello attacked “dictators” and “oligarchs.”
The festival also highlighted the overlap of activism and commerce, selling tiered tickets up to a “Robinhood” super-suite and promoting a paid MS NOW livestream membership alongside calls for solidarity and grassroots action.
Many featured artists and partners have longstanding Democratic or left-wing ties, underscoring how celebrity events are being used to convert fan attention into donations, visibility and potential votes ahead of the 2026 midterms.