Fact Check

Taylor Swift, Bruce Springsteen Didn't Say They'll Leave US if Trump Wins 2024 Election

The claim bore a resemblance to several others that Snopes has fact-checked.

Published Oct. 25, 2024

 (X user @DonaldTNews)
Image courtesy of X user @DonaldTNews
Claim:
Taylor Swift and Bruce Springsteen announced they would leave the United States should Donald Trump win the 2024 presidential election.

On Oct. 22, 2024, a post from X account @DonaldTNews alleged that singers Bruce Springsteen and Taylor Swift had announced that they would leave the country if former U.S. President Donald Trump won the 2024 presidential election. The post garnered over 1 million views and 37,000 likes, as of writing. Many users left comments implying they believed the post was real.

(X user @DonaldTNews)

Both Springsteen and Swift endorsed Trump's opponent, Vice President Kamala Harris, in the upcoming election. However, there was no actual evidence Springsteen or Swift said they would leave the country if Trump won. The claim was unfounded.

If, hypothetically speaking, there were even a sliver of truth to the claim — for instance, if Springsteen had made a joke to reporters implying he would leave the country if Trump won — reputable media outlets would have documented those comments. That had not happened, at least not in 2024. 

Springsteen did actually make a comment about leaving the country if Trump won the presidency during the lead-up to the 2020 election, and his remark was reported on at the time. However, there was no evidence of such a comment made leading up to the 2024 election, as Snopes previously reported.

The claim that very large celebrities have announced they would leave the country if a certain candidate won the presidential election is an old and tired one — Snopes has checked similar claims for over 20 years. As for the 2024 election, Snopes previously reviewed such rumors about Swift and her boyfriend Travis Kelce, Miley Cyrus, Jack Black and Tom Hanks. All of them were false or unfounded.

Sources

Dobrin, Nikki. "Bruce Springsteen Said He'll Leave US If Trump Reelected in 2024?" Snopes, 19 July 2024, https://www.snopes.com//fact-check/trump-springsteen-leave-usa/.

"Fact Check: No Evidence Swift, Kelce Said They Will Leave US If Trump Wins Election." Reuters, 20 Feb. 2024. www.reuters.com, https://www.reuters.com/fact-check/no-evidence-swift-kelce-said-they-will-leave-us-if-trump-wins-election-2024-02-20/.

Izzo, Jack. "Did Tom Hanks Say He Would Leave US If Trump Wins 2024 Election?" Snopes, 27 Dec. 2023, https://www.snopes.com//fact-check/tom-hanks-leaving-usa-trump/.

---. "Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce Said They'll Leave US If Trump Wins 2024 Election?" Snopes, 19 July 2024, https://www.snopes.com//fact-check/swift-kelce-leave-country-trump/.

Jordan, Chris. "No, Bruce Springsteen Has Not Said He's Leaving the US If Donald Trump Wins the Election." Asbury Park Press, https://www.app.com/story/entertainment/music/2024/10/07/bruce-springsteen-leaving-donald-trump-election-kamala-harris/75560024007/. Accessed 25 Oct. 2024.

Liles, Jordan. "Taylor Swift and Miley Cyrus Said They Will Leave US If Trump Wins 2024 Election?" Snopes, 29 Apr. 2024, https://www.snopes.com//fact-check/swift-cyrus-trump-2024/.

Mikkelson, David. "Did These Celebrities Say They Would Leave the US If George W. Bush Won the 2000 Presidential Election?" Snopes, 13 Mar. 2002, https://www.snopes.com//fact-check/star-trek/.

Nolan, Emma. "Bruce Springsteen Jokes He'll Leave the Country If Trump Is Re-Elected." Newsweek, 16 Oct. 2020, https://www.newsweek.com/bruce-springsteen-leave-country-trump-reelected-australia-1539730.

Wazer, Caroline. "Jack Black Vowed to Leave the US Permanently?" Snopes, 8 Aug. 2024, https://www.snopes.com//fact-check/jack-black-leave-us/.

What Impact Will Taylor Swift Really Have on the US Election? https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cy4d3y0kl4eo. Accessed 25 Oct. 2024.

Jack Izzo is a Chicago-based journalist and two-time "Jeopardy!" alumnus.