Bruce Springsteen has responded to the recent killings of Renee Good and Alex Pretti in Minneapolis at the hands of United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Customs and Border Protection agents with a new song titled “Streets of Minneapolis.”
You can listen to the song and read the lyrics below.
“I wrote this song on Saturday, recorded it yesterday and released it to you today in response to the state terror being visited on the city of Minneapolis,” Springsteen wrote on Facebook. “It’s dedicated to the people of Minneapolis, our innocent immigrant neighbors and in memory of Alex Pretti and Renee Good. Stay free, Bruce Springsteen.”
Listen to Bruce Springsteen’s ‘Streets of Minneapolis’
READ MORE: The Best Song From Every Bruce Springsteen Album
What Happened to Alex Pretti and Renee Good?
On Jan. 24, federal agents in Minneapolis fatally shot Alex Pretti, a 37-year-old intensive care nurse who appeared to be using his phone to record U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers. Videos show agents pinning Pretti to the ground and hitting him, and one officer leaving with what appears to be a gun.
Pretti’s death marked the second fatal Minneapolis shooting by a federal agent this month, following the Jan. 7 shooting of Renee Good by ICE agent Jonathan Ross. Both deaths have led to nationwide calls for more thorough investigations and the removal of ICE from Minneapolis.
How Did Other Rockers React to the Killings of Renee Good and Alex Pretti?
Springsteen is not the first rock artist to react to the murders of Good and Pretti. Graham Nash issued a lengthy statement denouncing ICE and President Donald Trump while also taking stock of his large catalog of protest songs.
“So I’ll say it again… after just watching a bunch of thugs who call themselves ‘agents’ kill yet another human being: F**K ICE,” Nash said. “And since these murderers are part of a government sanctioned agency I’ll say this and don’t bother getting mad about it: F**K TRUMP too.”
READ MORE: Rockers React to ‘Insane’ Border Patrol Killing of Alex Pretti
Journey guitarist Neal Schon also reacted to the killing of Pretti with a concise post on X (formerly Twitter), writing, “This is f—ing insane and it all needs to stop.”
Famously outspoken guitarist Tom Morello reshared several anti-ICE posts following Pretti’s death and referred to the agency as “masked federal government secret police murdering US citizens” in an exchange with another X user.
Bruce Springsteen, ‘Streets of Minneapolis’ Lyrics
Through the winter’s ice and coldDown Nicollet AvenueA city aflame fought fire and ice‘Neath an occupier’s bootsKing Trump’s private army from the DHSGuns belted to their coatsCame to Minneapolis to enforce the lawOr so their story goesAgainst smoke and rubber bulletsBy the dawn’s early lightCitizens stood for justiceTheir voices ringing through the nightAnd there were bloody footprintsWhere mercy should have stoodAnd two dead left to die on snow-filled streetsAlex Pretti and Renee Good
Oh our Minneapolis, I hear your voiceSinging through the bloody mistWe’ll take our stand for this landAnd the stranger in our midstHere in our home they killed and roamedIn the winter of ’26We’ll remember the names of those who diedOn the streets of Minneapolis
Trump’s federal thugs beat up onHis face and his chestThen we heard the gunshotsAnd Alex Pretti lay in the snow, deadTheir claim was self defense, sirJust don’t believe your eyesIt’s our blood and bonesAnd these whistles and phonesAgainst Miller and Noem’s dirty lies
Oh our Minneapolis, I hear your voiceCrying through the bloody mistWe’ll remember the names of those who diedOn the streets of Minneapolis
Now they say they’re here to uphold the lawBut they trample on our rightsIf your skin is black or brown my friendYou can be questioned or deported on sight
In chants of ICE out nowOur city’s heart and soul persistsThrough broken glass and bloody tearsOn the streets of Minneapolis
Oh our Minneapolis, I hear your voiceSinging through the bloody mistHere in our home they killed and roamedIn the winter of ’26We’ll take our stand for this landAnd the stranger in our midstWe’ll remember the names of those who diedOn the streets of MinneapolisWe’ll remember the names of those who diedOn the streets of Minneapolis
Bruce Springsteen Albums Ranked
From scrappy Dylan disciple to one of the leading singer-songwriters of his generation, the Boss’ catalog includes both big and small statements of purpose.
Gallery Credit: Michael Gallucci
