NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles!
As rapper Macklemore sparks controversy for his anti-Israel activism, rock stars Bruce Springsteen and Dave Matthews are now headlining a “Power To The People” music festival that features a partisan network of nonprofits and activists mobilizing against President Donald Trump in the run-up to the midterm elections.
Performers from hip-hop group The Neighborhood Kids kicked off the festival with Macklemore’s protest anthem, chanting “Palestine free and free!” » and continuing with a statement of protest from the “belly of the beast”, against the “financing of genocide” and the “terrorist organization” of Immigration and Customs Enforcement. » He dedicated his representation to the “martyrs” insulted against “Western imperialism”.
The marketing language used on the festival’s official website “Power To The People” talks about activating “the power that human beings have every day” to “shape” the world “on Election Day and beyond.”
The festival bears clear signs of alignment with the Democratic Party and highlights the intersection of pop culture, nonprofit fundraising and partisan politics, revealing how the drawing power of celebrities translates into money, visibility and voters for organizations advancing a political agenda.
In the chat, while waiting for a live broadcast on MS NOW, a user aligned with the Democrats, one user wrote: “BLUE WAVE”, symbolizing the expected victories of the Democratic Party in the upcoming elections. Others peppered their comments with blue wave and blue heart emojis.
By combining performance with voter registration, activist organizing and charitable giving, “Power To
Singer Bruce Springsteen performs at a Harris-Walz campaign rally in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S., October 28, 2024. (Photo by Nathan Morris/NurPhoto via Getty Images) (Nathan Morris/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
The People” offers participating bands a platform to turn fans’ enthusiasm for music into political engagement – and votes – ahead of the midterm elections. Festival organizers did not respond to a request for comment.
As musical artists passionately urge festival-goers to vote Democratic, the event raises the question of whether participating nonprofits cross the line between permissible voter engagement and partisan intervention in campaigning, which federal tax law prohibits 501(c)(3) organizations.
PARTY POOPERS FIGHT CARD: JANE FONDA, ‘NO KINGS’, COMMUNISTS DEPLOY RIVAL SHOW AT TRUMP’S 250TH
Jane Fonda and Rep. Ilhan Omar appear on stage at the No Kings rallies in St. Paul, Minnesota on March 28, 2026. (Adam Bettcher/Getty Images)
A “Freedom Village,” set up on the Merriweather Post Pavilion festival grounds in Columbia, Md., outside the nation’s capital, features a roster of nonprofits including Indivisible, funded by billionaire George Soros, Third Act, the ACLU and other groups that have been central to coordinating the “No Kings,” “Tesla Takedown” and “Hands Off” protests against Trump for nearly two years.
Last year, Springsteen performed at a “No Kings” protest at the state Capitol in St. Paul, Minnesota, organized by Indivisible and featuring anti-Trump activist Jane Fonda. He also headlined a “No Kings” event at the Target Center in Minneapolis.
FIRST ON FOX: THE ‘NO KINGS’ PROTEST NETWORK BEHIND THE FIGHT AGAINST AI DATA CENTERS AND FLOCK CAMERAS
Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band perform during the Land of Hope & Dreams U.S. Tour at Target Center on March 31, 2026 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. (Kevin Mazur/Getty Images)
Many of the festival’s artists and organizers bring a documented history of campaigning for Democrats and far-left activism. Festival organizer Tom Morello, guitarist for the band Rage Against the Machine, called socialism a “necessity.”
Opening the concert after hip-hop group The Neighborhood Kids, Morello blasted “fascists and so-called dictators” and “oligarchs,” symbolic references demonstrators have used during nearly two years of protests against Trump.
According to an online fundraising form, the “Power To The People Festival Fund” is identified as a financially funded project by Catalyst Philanthropy Fund, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization established in 2024 in Nashville with $6.5 million in annual revenue, according to its latest tax filing.
Tom Morello performed with Bruce Springsteen at Madison Square Garden on Monday. (Taylor Hill/WireImage)
Springsteen endorsed the Democratic presidential ticket in 2024, saying, “I support Kamala Harris for president and Tim Walz for vice president.” » He also called Trump “the most dangerous presidential candidate of my lifetime.”
Artist Dave Matthews participated in the 2020 “I Will Vote” concert, which his official website promoted as supporting Biden, Harris and Democrats in the vote. Earlier, Matthews supported socialist presidential candidate Bernie Sanders, writing, “Ultimately, Bernie Sanders represents what I want from my government.”
Artist and festival DJ Shepard Fairey created the iconic Obama “Hope” poster and “Forward” image supporting Harris in 2024.
“I believe that Vice President Kamala Harris and her choice Tim Walz are our best chance moving forward,” Fairey wrote on her website. It offered the image of grassroots activism and linked readers to Head Count Inc., a nonprofit organization receiving proceeds from the festival, to “help fans register to vote and learn more about how to participate in the upcoming elections.”
Head Count Inc., based in New York, has revenue of about $14 million, according to its latest IRS tax filing.
The other nonprofit receiving festival profits is VoteRiders, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit based in Washington, D.C., with $7.8 million in revenue, based on its most recent tax filing.
The festival’s “community partners” include Ben & Jerry’s, the ice cream company whose co-founder Ben Cohen, a far-left activist, was a guest at the wedding of communist tech mogul Neville Roy Singham and Jodie Evans, co-founder of CodePink, a fierce anti-Trump nonprofit that received $1.33 million from Singham.
Another community partner is Red Emma’s, a Baltimore bookstore with a “Marxism, Socialism and Communism” tab on its website, selling communist philosopher Vladimir Lenin’s “Teachings of Karl Marx,” “Black Marxism” and “Flowers for Marx.”
Political tendencies extend to young artists. Musician “Grandson,” real name Jordan Benjamin, described using his platform to advance climate advocacy, voter registration and youth empowerment through his XX Resistance Fund. In a September 2020 interview, he praised Biden’s policy agenda and made his electoral preference explicit: “We should elect this guy.”
At the festival, he blasted the “AI apocalypse” and sang a famous song celebrating the self-immolation of a US serviceman, Aaron Bushnell, in 2024 at the Israeli Embassy in Washington, DC, to protest Israel’s military response to the October 7, 2023 attack by Hamas.
“Martyrdom is meditation, self-immolation!” sang the musician while bouncing on stage.
Musician Bruce Springsteen performs at the opening of the Obama Presidential Center in the Jackson Park neighborhood of Chicago, Illinois, U.S., Thursday, June 18, 2026. Intended as a celebration of the progress embodied by the nation’s first black leader, its Juneteenth unveiling comes at a time when his agenda – and broader diversity initiatives – are fading after a decade of concerted attacks. Photographer: Talia Sprague/Bloomberg via Getty Images (Talia Sprague/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
At “Power to the People,” the concept of “solidarity” comes with a VIP upgrade. The festival combines its message of collective action with a familiar concert business model: phased entry, exclusive viewing areas and premium hospitality. Fans can choose between entrance to the ‘People’s Park’ pitch, access to the ‘People’s Pavilion’ and the ‘Circle of Solidarity’ VIP package, which offers reserved seating, fast-track entry and an ‘exclusive VIP terrace with a premium bar and food available for purchase’.
The premium “Robinhood Package,” dubbed the “VIP SUPER SUITE,” adds an exclusive suite, a dedicated second stage viewing area and an elevated balcony advertised as offering “the best view of the stage and festival.” Buyers also receive a commemorative poster and laminate, a phone charging station, and a “VIP host with bar/food concierge service available for purchase.” Even at the highest level, advertised refreshments cost more.
Organizers say the premium packages serve a charitable purpose, but the website uses different descriptions of the donation pledge. Its preview promises a portion of all ticket revenue and “100% of net VIP ticket revenue” to VoteRiders and Head Count.
Instead, the package descriptions promise “all proceeds from VIP sales” to nonprofit organizations supporting human rights and social justice.
Commercial offerings extend beyond location. The festival’s website promotes a paid membership with its livestreaming partner, MS NOW, advertising access to “daily live interactions and Q&As” with personalities including Democratic-aligned hosts Rachel Maddow, Jen Psaki, Al Sharpton and Joe Scarborough and Jen Psaki, a former Biden spokesperson.
Alongside calls for “grassroots organizing” and “mutual aid,” the event offers a marketplace for enhanced access, media subscriptions, and “hospitality.”
Returning to the stage with the Neighborhood Kids, the hip-hop artists continued their ICE blast and raised their fists in the air to inspire the audience. “Power to the people!” they shouted.
“Rest in peace to all the martyrs,” one member of the group shouted. “Liberate the world! Liberate Palestine! Liberate the Congo! Liberate Armenia! Liberate Sudan! And liberate everywhere in the world from Western imperialism.”
“And we have merch in this tent!” ” the group member continued, pointing to the “Liberty Village,” while another shouted “¡Viva la revolución!”
CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS APP
Gn entert
