Bruce Springsteen Center for American Music Opens in Long Branch

The Bruce Springsteen Center for American Music opens Saturday in Long Branch, New Jersey, where the 20-time Grammy winner was born. The two-level building covers about 3,000 square meters and will hold Springsteen's archives along with instruments and clothing loaned by other performers.

Construction cost $53 million, financed largely by donations from Springsteen fans, according to executive director Bob Santelli.

The center sits a short distance from Asbury Park, the coastal town that shaped the performer's early career. Exhibits include a gold jacket once owned by Elvis Presley, a saxophone played by John Coltrane, an Eddie Van Halen guitar, and a cap belonging to Chuck D. Santelli said the items were obtained through direct requests to the artists or their estates.

U.S. musical genres such as blues, country, hip-hop, and jazz. A separate section highlights protest voices including Woody Guthrie, Bob Dylan, Nina Simone, Public Enemy, Kendrick Lamar, and Springsteen.

Listening stations and touchscreens let visitors explore recordings across styles and decades. Springsteen appears in a 25-minute film shown at the entrance. "I'm the one of a long line of messengers," he says.

A temporary exhibit titled "Chimes of Freedom: Politics, Protest and the Power of Song" opens with the building and will remain for about six months. Santelli said the center aims to present an apolitical account even though Springsteen has used recent tour stops to criticize President Donald Trump.

U.S. Tour in May. The museum omits certain genres such as disco, funk, house, and techno because of limited space, collections director Melissa Kozlowski said.