MINNEAPOLIS — Before he sang a word, Bruce Springsteen proclaimed a mission statement Tuesday, March 31, at Target Center.

“We are here in celebration and in defense of American ideals, our Constitution, democracy and our sacred American promise,” he said in part.

Then he wasted no time in demonstrating what he meant.

“War!” he shouted. “What is it good for? Absolutely nothing.”

Springsteen promised his Land of Hope and Dreams American Tour would be political and topical, so he kicked it off with “War,” a scorching anti-war anthem that dates to the Vietnam days when it became a No. 1 hit for Edwin Starr in 1970.

Springsteen’s own live recording of “War” sent it up the charts again in 1985. The song was last part of his concert repertoire in 2003 during the Iraq war. But he pulled it out once more Tuesday night as the fans shouted as one.

With Springsteen’s unrestrainedly urgent voice and the fierce, foot-stomping E Street Band, “War” resonated loud and clear and emphatically Tuesday as the United States continued another week of airstrikes in Iran.

A man on a mission, Springsteen is angry and he’s not going to take it anymore. He’s going to do what he is known for — using his words, his voice, his music to inspire Americans to stand up for what they believe in.

For three hours in Minneapolis, the age-defying rock hero and undeterred activist roared and rocked as if he’d been rejuvenated at age 76, delivering a captivating combination of thoughtful ballads and blistering rockers.

This was as purposeful and powerful as a rock concert gets in 2026. And arguably the most deeply impactful performance Springsteen has given in the Twin Cities since his 1975 debut.

After rehearsing for two days at Target Center, Springsteen is taking his tour to 19 U.S. cities, intentionally starting in Minneapolis, Portland, Oregon, and Los Angeles — three places that became targets of the federal government’s Operation Metro Surge — and ending intentionally in the nation’s capital, Washington, D.C.

Indeed, the Boss got political on Tuesday, as he has done periodically in his 54-year recording career.

The opening salvo did not aim for subtlety. After “War,” he blasted the Vietnam vet quandary “Born in the U.S.A.,” delivered the Irish-flavored “Death to My Hometown” and belted the determined “No Surrender” with its fist-waving chorus.

Springsteen downshifted to the dark and edgy “Darkness on the Edge of Town” to set up the night’s focal point, “Streets of Minneapolis.”

Instead of playing it solo on acoustic guitar as he had done twice previously in the Twin Cities, Springsteen started by himself on electric guitar, with the full E Street Band joining in mid-song, giving it their signature mid-’80s sound. The momentum built as the crowd chanted “ICE out now,” not once, not twice, but four times at the urging of the Boss.

It was the ultimate Minneapolis moment, a mix of tears, pride and complicated joy that has gripped Minnesota in the past few months.

Springsteen and his 18-person band raged on “Murder Incorporated” (1982), a rambunctious rocker about the senselessness of gun violence punctuated by Jake Clemons’ spirited saxophone and Steven Van Zandt’s slashing guitar. The Boss haunted with 2001’s “American Skin (41 Shots)” — about an unarmed student of color who was killed with 41 bullets fired by four police officers in 1999 — highlighted by Tom Morello’s noisily elegant guitar salute.

One of the night’s most galvanizing moments was “The Ghost of Tom Joad,” a seething duet with Morello, who unleashed ferocious, roof-raising guitar passion.

The Boss turned down the volume but not the hurt with the gospel-infused “Long Walk Home,” introduced as “a prayer for our country,” and “Youngstown,” a 1995 Rust Belt lament about a soldier-turned-steelworker who missed out on the American dream.

The New Jersey icon got on his soapbox four times during the evening. Before post-9/11’s “My City in Ruins” from 2002, he gave a rousing five-minute sermon about the “corruption in the White House,” calling out Attorney General Pam Bondi by name and ultimately imploring, “Let’s fight for the America we love. Are you with us?” The crowd of nearly 20,000 exploded.

Despite all the despair and dashed dreams, Springsteen still infused the proceedings with hope. He blared the ebullient “The Rising,” his 2002 response to the 9/11 attacks, that urges strength in moments of great sorrow, as well as the euphoric 1978 sing-along “Badlands.”

In conversation, the rock hero implored the fans to take peaceful action, praising what Minnesotans had done to defend American ideals during Operation Metro Surge and declaring, “We need to feel your hope and your strength.”

Tuesday’s repertoire felt so different from the Rock & Roll Hall of Famer’s 2023 concert in St. Paul when he seemed ruminative and philosophical, reflecting on friendship, mortality and faith. Tuesday evening had more urgency and uplift, a sense of optimism and possibilities, as he looked ahead to the future of our country and democracy.

It was a set mostly devoid of love songs save for “Because the Night,” featuring Nils Lofgren’s blazing guitar solo, and ready-for-the-roller-rink “Bobby Jean.”

Although Springsteen is one of the most purposeful and thoughtful performers in popular music, the pure joy of rock ‘n’ roll is in his DNA. Tuesday’s encore celebrated an exhilarating and liberating run through his classics, including “Born to Run,” “Dancing in the Dark” and “10th Avenue Freeze-Out,” that elevated the Boss into rock’s mythic marathon concertizer.

To continue the feel-good encore, Springsteen played the opening notes of Prince’s “Purple Rain” and shouted out “the maestro.” He continued the everyone-plays-it-in-Minnesota classic, noteworthy for the guitar exchange between Lofgren and Morello, whose guitar fire lights up any stage.

The concert turned out to have a totally Minnesota ending as Springsteen returned to his topical theme of the night for the finale, a stirring version of Bob Dylan’s 1964 poetic protest gem “Chimes of Freedom,” a righteous hymn for now and forever.

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