John Hinckley Jr. Is YouTube’s Newest Music Artist
John Hinckley Jr, better known as the guy who shot Ronald Reagan to get Jodie Foster's attention, who then spent 35 years in a psychiatric facility, is YouTube's newest musical artist.
The 66-year-old went to court last year to find out if he was allowed to post his music to YouTube under his own name. His goal is to make a different name for himself, to get over the whole "tried to kill the president" reputation he has.
He created a YouTube channel, where shares the usual covers of songs like “Blowing in the Wind" by Bob Dylan and Elvis' "Can't Help Falling in Love." What's brought the most attention to his channel is his original music.
One song called "Majesty of Love" takes a deep dive into the meaning of love, singing when "every couple settles down, goodness will be found,” and “before the negativity, there’s still you and me.”
Hinckley was released from the facility he was housed in back in 2018, to the custody of his mother in Virginia.
He says he's struggling in his dating life, which is super weird for a guy who shot a sitting president in order to get the attention of a 19-year-old actress. Hinckley's treatment team discussed the possibility of online dating, but some members of the team said it was "far too risky" for him to do so. Imagine scrolling through Tinder and seeing that guy.
The channel was created five months ago, and has already brought in almost 50k views and almost 3.5k subscribers.
One comment that stood out from the rest in one of his videos said "You may have missed with Reagan but this one’s a hit."