NEW YORK (1010 WINS) -- John Hinckley Jr., the man who attempted to assassinate Ronald Reagan in 1981, is coming to Brooklyn this summer to perform in concert after his singer-songwriter YouTube videos took off.
He’s slated to perform at Market Hotel in Bushwick on July 8. Curious history buffs and die-hard fans can buy tickets for $20 here.
Hinckley, 66, spent 35 years in a psychiatric institution after pleading insanity for the assassination attempt and was released in 2016.
The fledgeling musician started recording videos of himself covering songs by the Beatles, Bob Dylan and other popular artists in December 2020. He started writing his own music since then and has garnered over 26,000 subscribers on YouTube.
On New Year’s Eve he announced his intention to start a record label, Emporia Records. The first release will be a 14-track album of Hinckley’s music, but he intends to publish other artists as well.
On his Instagram account, which was created Friday, Hinckley follows some of the coolest names in 90s alt-rock. From the Pixies to Yo La Tengo to Pavement, Hinckley’s tastes should appeal to a Bushwick crowd.
Hinckley was obsessed with Jodi Foster and the movie ‘Taxi Driver,’ which his lawyers argued in court drove him to shoot Reagan.
He opened fire on the former president, hitting him and three others. All survived, but Reagan’s press secretary James Brady was partially paralyzed.
Hinckley has since apologized for the shooting and the Department of Behavioral Health at St. Elizabeth Hospital in Washington, D.C. said he poses a “low risk for future violence,” Rolling Stone reported.
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