Bruce Springsteen recalls his first and only karaoke experience

October 3, 2025 1

Bruce Springsteen and Jeremy Allen White on ‘Jimmy Kimmel Live!’/(ABC/Randy Holmes)

You’d think folks would be excited to see Bruce Springsteen taking part in some karaoke, but apparently that just wasn’t the case.

Springsteen appeared on Jimmy Kimmel Live! Thursday, where he shared the story of his first and only karaoke experience, noting it happened in a small bar in London.

“I decided I was going to do The Temptations‘ ‘Ain’t Too Proud to Beg,’” The Boss said. “And so I assume, I’m gonna get up there, I’m going to sing a few notes and this place is going to go wild. So I got up there, I started singing and they thought I was just another a****** who got up onstage and was trying to do karaoke.”

He added, “So it was really disappointing. I’ve never done it again.”

Springsteen was on Kimmel with Jeremy Allen White, who plays him in the upcoming movie Springsteen: Deliver Me From Nowhere. Springsteen was a constant presence on the film’s set and said he feels a little bad about.

“I felt a little guilty about that because I was on the set quite a bit,” Springsteen said. “And I’m going, here’s the guy, the guy’s not only trying, playing me, but he’s got to play me while my stupid a** is sitting in the chair next to him.”

Springsteen then apologized to White, adding, “You did a great job. He really tolerated me on the set.”

But Jeremy said that while he first felt nervous about Bruce being around, “I very quickly realized, like, his presence was permission. And, you know, it would have been strange if he was so close to us the whole time and he wasn’t with us while we were filming. So I’m very grateful for it.”

Springsteen: Deliver Me From Nowhere opens Oct. 24.