BON JOVI frontman Jon Bon Jovi is featured in a new interview at In The Studio's Beard Blog. An excerpt is available below:

Redbeard: In a September 1989 interview, you told me that your politics and religion have to be kept private. When did you change your mind in that regard, and more importantly, why ?

Jon Bon Jovi: "I really see myself as a concerned citizen (now), and a father of four and a husband, and certainly an ambassador of pop culture in this world. As I traveled near and far to Africa, Asia, Europe, I’ve seen just from afar that people love America. They really love the culture. They love the music we have given them. They love the idea of the dreams that we have given them. And I’m sad to say that, in places where I went fifteen years ago and was greeted as that ambassador of culture, I would have second thoughts about going to (now) . Not necessarily for fear of my own safety but perhaps for somebody on a road crew. And it’s a shame, because I love this country immensely. And I don’t get involved in politics as much as I do in philanthropy, because I’m a firm believer that 50% of the people are against you just because they believe you vote with a certain political party. I don’t want to be the man at the party, I want to be the guy who makes a difference, that believes in the ideals of what this country was founded on. The more I read of Thomas Jefferson andAbraham Lincoln and George Washington, and especially John Adams who was not as well known to me until recent years, that I realized that this is a magical place, a mystical place that is worth defending. Not the way it was represented by George W.Bush and Dick Cheney. And if that’s going to cause me some pain, as it has, then so be it. I’m just reporting in as a concerned citizen."

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As previously reported, Bon Jovi tops the Hot Tours ranking with box office grosses reported from the June dates of the European leg of its Live 2011 Tour. Ticket sales from 10 markets generated over $38.6 million (US$) during the month, with attendance counts totaling 417,698 from 11 shows. The one city with a two-show run was Dublin with 68,144 fans in attendance on June 29th and 30th at the outdoor sports venue, RDS Arena. The gross topped €4.6 million ($6.4 million US$) from both sold out performances in the Irish capital city.

The band kicked off its European itinerary in Croatia on June 8th and played to sellout crowds in Germany, Norway, Finland and Denmark before wrapping the month in the U.K. and Ireland.

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