Whereas Bruce Springsteen is known as the The Boss because of his extraordinary leadership of the E Street Band and musical talent; Whereas Bruce Springsteen was born on September 23, 1949, in Long Branch, New Jersey; Whereas the New Jersey State Legislature passed and Governor Phil Murphy signed a formal proclamation designating September 23d as Bruce Springsteen Day ; Whereas Bruce Springsteen received his first guitar at the age of 13 and has learned how to make it talk for the next 60 years; Whereas Bruce Springsteen’s career has shaped American music and culture with themes of working-class struggles, economic and racial inequality, and achieving the American Dream; Whereas Bruce Springsteen has uplifted the challenges, contributions, and tremendous courage of everyday Americans, such as factory workers, first responders, and veterans, giving them a voice that will be heard through his work for generations; Whereas Bruce Springsteen was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by President Barack Obama and National Medal of Arts by President Joe Biden for his contributions to arts and culture and for capturing the unyielding spirit of what it means to be American ; Whereas Bruce Springsteen was inducted into the New Jersey Hall of Fame in 2008 for his musical influence and philanthropic work for the Garden State; Whereas Bruce Springsteen’s breakout album Born to Run reached number 3 on the Billboard 200 and sold 7,000,000 copies in the United States; Whereas Bruce Springsteen brought the style and genre of heartland rock music to prominence in the United States and on the international stage following his hit Born in the U.S.A. in 1984; Whereas Bruce Springsteen’s album The Rising , released in 2002, helped Americans heal in the aftermath of the attacks on September 11, 2001; Whereas Bruce Springsteen has released 21 studio albums and sold over 150,000,000 records worldwide; Whereas Bruce Springsteen has earned 50 Grammy nominations and taken home 20 Grammy Awards