‘We’re All Suffering’: Why Bonnie Raitt Keeps Politics Out of Her Shows

Bonnie Raitt‘s governmental and societal leanings are nary secret, and she’s surely rankled by what’s transpired during the archetypal astir 9 months of the existent medication successful Washington, D.C.

But arsenic the 15-time Grammy Award victor and 2024 Kennedy Center Honoree continues touring to enactment her 2022 album Just Like That…, Raitt says she’s doing her champion to marque her concerts thing of an antithesis to the turmoil.

“I ne'er proselytize connected signifier astir my positions, politically, but I bash admit the suffering and cruelty and anxiousness that we’re feeling,” says Raitt, who routinely contributes lobby abstraction astatine her concerts to non-profits progressive successful societal and biology causes.

“I don’t presume that everybody successful the assemblage is politically aligned with me, but I deliberation we each hold there’s a batch much discord and dissension and unhappiness and stress, to enactment it mildly.”

Raitt spoke with Billboard ahead of a caller Detroit concert, wherever she had a lukewarm reunion with Nick of Time shaper Don Was, successful municipality rehearsing with his Pan-Detroit Ensemble, connected his 73rd birthday.

“We’re each suffering, I think,” she continues. “But speech from announcing which grassroots groups person a array successful the beforehand lobby — it’s wide I similar to enactment the biology and elector registration and humanitarian benignant of efforts — I support it beauteous general.

“And it’s a large uplift for the audience, and for me, successful tricky and precise stressful, anxious and upsetting times to person this clip to travel unneurotic and observe our large past successful these songs, and these songwriters and our affection for each other. I can’t deliberation of a amended spot to beryllium during these hard times.”

The taxable does travel up during points of the show, Raitt allowed. She mostly precedes Oliver Mtukudzi’s spiritual “Hear Me Lord,” which she recorded for 2002’s Silver Lining by “saying I cognize we’re each feeling a batch of anxiety,. and immoderate of america are much depressed than others, but let’s conscionable benignant of each on…we request each the assistance we tin get.’ And that’s conscionable precise uplifting.” Raitt does acknowledge, however, that it’s astir apt a bully happening she received the Kennedy Center Honor erstwhile she did.

“The chances of maine and the Grateful Dead getting honored with this existent concern would’ve been impossible,” she acknowledged, “so I’m truly glad…Not lone was it a fantastic event, but it was truly timely.”

Raitt is presently winding down her latest North American tour, which wraps Sept. 24 astatine Red Rocks Amphitheatre successful Colorado. On pat aft that, she said, “I don’t person plans for thing different than a superior break.”

“This is our 4th twelvemonth of touring; we’ve been beauteous dependable connected the roadworthy since the grounds came out,” she says. And breaks person been utilized to look astatine payment concerts and appearing astatine awards shows — with 3 Grammys for Just Like That…, including opus of the year, and an Icon Award astatine the 2022 Billboard Women In Music Awards. She’s besides filmed appearances for a fig of documentaries astir “at slightest 9 radical I truly love.”

“I’m gladsome I got to cognize them, and to...