Jon Bon Jovi interview 14 June 2012

I know you're good friends with craftsmen, yes I am and we've talked to you before and Bob Kraft talks all the time about how you're one of the smartest businessmen and he also knows he's too nice, but thanks for that compliment Mr. Kraft, he is my mentor, my dear friend, since you know our Kraft family, they have been great to me, but seriously, you are not the typical rock star or rock legend, you are a serious person who is involved in many aspects different, why not? Don't you talk to us a little bit about what you see in business as it relates to the music industry and what's happening to the American consumer right now?

You should get an idea just by watching the tours and seeing what happens when they are. We are changing, you know, we are a crossroads in the music industry and I think initially the record companies took advantage of the consumer, then the consumer realized and instead of adopting some practices that were happening, they went after certain people and , in turn, I lost it and the genies are out of the bottle, as they say, but that doesn't mean that the music can't be saved and that the consumer can't find a consumer-friendly model that they will ultimately pay for and as a final result of all this.

The arts are all interdependent on each other and therefore those copyrights must be protected. Music, movies, books and art are interdependent on each other and for the culture to move forward, it is very important that we find a way to be able to grow that business. The Internet has obviously disrupted the protection of those copyrights. Do you think Apple and the iPod have been a good or bad thing for music? I have had a lot of problems for commenting. I'm always a big fan of Apple and a big fan of mr. works and now his legacy but with honesty as if I could describe and and say and only a quote was taken from a longer story if I present to you in the book a movie or a movie that you know or a record I want you to listen to the first track no matter how much I love you track 11.

I have been working for the last year to get my new album ready. Track 11 is as important to me as the single you're going to hear on the radio, so it was very important to me to feature it. as a piece of art and not to sell you one song at a time, that was something I read and apparently I lost the argument, but I still stand by that statement because you put all this together as something that you want to be seen as a whole. - It's definitely not just if I took a chapter out of a book, you'd feel like it's incomplete just like that, but can I say one thing when you know we're talking about America Joe and what everyone has here? a guy who does all the right things he's a family man he's in entertainment where all the crazy things happen he's always at his kids' events he's sporting events he's married to the same woman he's a great businessman who gives back to the community hehe does amazing things or even in Philadelphia with the houses or the restaurant, the soul food.

I mean, it's just him, it's what we need business families in America to do to connect with our communities. He does it globally as an artist. Some of us. I am very proud to have him as a special friend and we need him to be a role model. I hope more young people and entertainment follow his example. Thank you. Why don't you tell us about soul food? It is truly cuisine for the soul. That's an old kitchen. It's in red. Bank New Jersey we have what is called a specific restaurant, it is an extension of our foundation and we opened this restaurant after what was the real estate bubble and we have built houses with 330 houses so far, but in these times of food insecurity we opened a restaurant . and the idea is that if any of us came, there are no prices on the menu, but you are asked for a minimum donation, if you choose to just come and pay, you will be served an excellent three course meal, if you can't pay, you will be given . a gift certificate if you volunteer so we ask you to work in the kitchen or on the floor or if you can't work in our restaurant we have partnered with the medical clinic and other non-profits that people can get a kiss certificate to be able to come to our restaurant and then the foundation covers it, why don't we talk a little more about charity and the current situation?

And Joshua we get a chance to talk a little bit. Off camera ahead of what's happening with charities at the moment since the 2008 crisis, has it been harder to recover funds? I think where I am at Boys & Girls Clubs of Boston we are very fortunate to have a lot of people who really support us. Through thick and thin, many of the Bain people Jonathan mentioned have been great to us, but I know that many of my peers in the business have been through tough times, cutbacks, and more that have impacted their ability to serve their customers. the community and now the The national discussion in Washington has at least focused on ways to try to reduce our national debt and our deficit and one of the suggestions that have come up has been to simplify the tax code and with that there would be a lot of potential changes that would happen . to a charity, if the charity donates the records, the discount you get on your taxes, if that was removed, what would happen?

Well, I'm not the brightest guy in the world, Becky, but I would say this, why would we ever? discouraging people who invest and create jobs create capital and keep our economy moving why would we ever discourage them from investing in the community and supporting the community? It's pretty simple, I mean, do you think it would take a big hit? my dad my brothers John why would we want to discourage them by taking away the investment deduction and improving the community using their business knowledge? You know they've created jobs, they've created opportunities, they understand how to invest, why I would do it.

I hate to discourage that as a clever point. I don't think John and I or our family don't do it for the deductions, we do it for the psychic income, but I think a lot of people start donating some of it to charity. They get a tax benefit, but the economic return on that is so great, especially in these times, what we call social entrepreneurship, the soul, your soul, cooking kind of thing, I mean, you know, it's kind of a chance. An act of kindness people feel good when they do that and then they go out and do things, but it's the catalyst to start things.

I really hope that no matter what changes they make to the tax code they don't eliminate the charitable guy who Would you like to see changes to the tax code in general? Yes, I personally love it. I think we need a value added tax because I think that will reduce consumption and it will, and you know, encourage investment and exports and it's everywhere in the free sector. world like, thank you, so my album goes to concerts more expensive than you know what they still will because the unique things that you will look for you can't get, but it's not that he's not a commodity, he's a special and cool asset, just like I like to think that our football team pays income tax.

I'm not the one that allows them to sell, evaluate the attacks that they should do because I think that would help the United States more and create jobs, which is what we really need. for it to happen when he makes this great entertainment, they're making records, they're creating activity, we need what you said at the beginning of the show, we need growth, but you see these private sector guys and you hear about job creation and I know you. I've supported the Democrats, generally, the blood or Kerry allows you to see some of the way the rhetoric comes and goes and how uncomfortable it can be when you somehow trash the private sector or business owners or I mean, do you?

How, Jeff, how do you do it? You put up that whole trailer. One thing I don't use is my platform on stage to discuss my politics. If I'm involved supporting a candidate at a rally, you know what you came to see. I'm just there for people to come. to listen to the candidate, I would never get on my stage and preach my politics, but all I'm looking for is to help the community, so if I find through my own celebrity that I can do something like build house foundations and empower people. I think that is important and has become a responsibility.

Artists in general seem more concerned with the philanthropic side of things, but sometimes I think they forget that a lot of the philanthropic side comes from guys who probably had success in the private sector. but you know it's not just people who are donating money. I tell you, I prefer people to donate their time. Sure it's me, but you also want to grow the overall pie of the economy and unite the community, the rich and the poor. and the educated and the uneducated cannot trust the government, period. I have run straight into the brick wall and bureaucracy is a point for this presidential council and I realize that frustration and therefore, if we are collective, we depend on each other as a community.

I think that's all we can trust each other. I think the best thing about what John does is that a lot of artists give their time and their celebrity like he said and they think that's giving back and that's like part of it, but John has been fortunate and that's why John also gives his money and I think when you combine the money with the time and the articulate way he speaks, he really is a leader not only to the people who are his fan base but to anyone. Who has been lucky enough in this country?

A lot of people in his position say, I'll come to your event. Send me a limo. Send me a jet. And he knows it, but you know you're saying it's true and that's why he doesn't speak. about it, that's why we're going to talk about it and also, when he says he doesn't preach about politics, a good friend of mine went to see Roger Waters the other night, he loves the wall and he said he had to leave it. In the middle the guy was still talking about politics. I was there to entertain myself. Just a quick question about Soul Kitchen.

Is this something that could really expand across the country? I think so, but we've been very pragmatic in our approach and just writing the book. every day, so when it's absolutely fine in our business space that we're in now, maybe we'll share it with others. How long has it been there? We've been there for two years, but we started in a church basement for a while and then we were in a soup kitchen for a while and there were stigmas attached to both places of being perfectly what until we were in a commercial space and then there was the fear of the unknown still and when we are realizing that it is through outreach and bringing people together, slowly but surely, we are removing stone and we are serving the community, so I think we are doing the right thing if I could go back to music from a sense: there are 11 songs in the new one, there's the 11, it's a killer, we are John Parker last week, Sean Parker is behind Napster and now he has a new product, but also behind Spotify, which kind of came into a void, are there any models out there that you've seen?

You say, okay, this is the future of the music business, it's economical, it's going to work, is there anything? I'm not sure about any model I would endorse. I like the subscription idea, but I'm a purist. I know what it would be. It meant I put on headphones as a kid and held the album while I slept. I was really determined to get the artwork that big on my CD and now I went, you know how they are in lyrics and imagination really played a big role. Good part, what will you listen to when you leave here, but everything about John Bond?

You know, you know new bands, I sure listen to new and old. I'm not like that's new. I don't know, there are new bands. that I like a lot and there are unsigned bands and there are ways for kids to get record deals today and break the model that I created 30 years ago. There are ways through YouTube and independent releases and there are ways for the next one. Bob Dylan finds himself treading a little country on the new album. Is there anything closer? There are a couple of songs that could intersect. We had an hour. He was influenced by Nashville.

It was a number one album and a number one single first. rock band that once had a number one country single, so we've been fortunate that our music right now is a universal and timeless classic. I've had generations of kids and I still have number one records. When will the next January single be played? The March album. The set was well treated, thank you very much for meeting us today, it has been a pleasure. I can now go back to bed, my dear friend.