Bruce Springsteen unveils exhibition space in his New Jersey hometown

Bruce Springsteen returned to his hometown of Freehold, New Jersey, on Tuesday to unveil plans for a new exhibition space in partnership with the Bruce Springsteen Archives and Center for American Music at Monmouth University.

The exhibition, located at the Freehold Fire Department building on Main Street, is expected to open in 2024 and will include artifacts and photographs, as well as film, concert footage and interviews from the Jersey rock legend’s life and career, according to Variety.

“Everything I learned of deep importance, I learned in this town,” said Springsteen, adding, “I had all the usual joy and heartbreak of growing up in a small town like this, and the minute the opportunity arose, I got the hell out.”

Springsteen called the firehouse “the coolest building in town,” adding that “it feels bizarre, I sat three blocks from here, came up with a few songs about things that I liked and the idea that 50 years later anybody was going to be interested in it at all, I mean what are the odds, folks? They are very small.”

Bruce, who currently lives just 15 minutes away in Colts Neck, concluded by saying, “I come to town very, very often. I’ll be sitting in Federicis or I’ll just drive through on my own — I still do all the time. So, I’m watching you. It’s been wonderful having this town as the center of my art and my life. I look forward to doing that until they put me in a box.”