New Jersey Celebrated Bruce Springsteen On His Birthday With A Tongue-In-Cheek Tweet

At this point, Bruce Springsteen has become so synonymous with New Jersey that it’s hard to imagine one without the other. That’s why it’s not particularly surprising that as the rock and roll veteran turns 72 today, the state who wants to name rest stops after its one true boss wanted to public celebrate the momentous occasion. What’s hilarious, though, is exactly how they chose to do it.

The @NJGov account on Twitter has been well-known for participating in internet culture fun, and that’s exactly what they chose to do in honor of Bruce’s birthday. “Happy birthday dad,” the genius behind the account wrote, perfecting both a dad joke and offering a quintessential use of the joke format of referring to a beloved elder as a parent. They also tagged Springsteen in the photo, which is a very young Bruce sitting waterfront. Full marks, perfect post.

In other recent Bruce news, he’s been in fine form as the iconic musical face of the greater northeast — particularly New Jersey and New York — by performing at the recent 9/11 memorial, appearing alongside Patti Smith and The Killers for an NYC “homecoming concert,” and turning his “Renegades” podcast with former president Barack Obama into a book deal. Happy birthday, Bruce, here’s hoping I’m as productive at 72.