| 100% | BORN | 4 | "___ to Run," song by Bruce Springsteen about driving on U.S. Route 9 and hope of starting anew with a girl |
| 32% | LIFE | 4 | "___ Is a Highway," song by Tom Cochrane about driving on a road trip of life full of ups and downs |
| 29% | OUTINTHESTREET | 14 | Bruce Springsteen song with the lyrics "I take my hard earned money / And meet my girl down on the block" (4 wds.) |
| 28% | FROZEN | 6 | 1998 song by Madonna that peaked at No. 2 on the Billboard Hot 100 with lyrics about a cold and emotionless man |
| 27% | THUNDER | 7 | __ Road, Bruce Springsteen song on Born to Run |
| 27% | TOM | 3 | "The Ghost of ___ Joad," song by Bruce Springsteen based on a famous literary character from "The Grapes of Wrath" |
| 27% | LAYLA | 5 | 1970 song by Eric Clapton featuring the titular character who's got him "on his knees," and is just the kind of girl they sing songs about |
| 27% | JESMYNWARD | 10 | Author of “Let Us Descend,” about Annis, a enslaved girl who is separated from her mother and sold by her white father (October, 2023) |
| 26% | MANDOLIN | 8 | "___ Rain," 1986 song by Bruce Hornsby and the Range with a string instrument in its title |
| 26% | YEAROFTHEMONKEY | 15 | 2004 ... with a hint to the starts of 20-, 34- and 51-Across |
| 26% | PROUDMARY | 9 | Girl in a Tina Turner song from the soundtrack of "What's Love Got to Do with It": 2 wds. |
| 26% | DICE | 4 | *Board game cubes ... or with "Roll of the," a song by Bruce Springsteen |
| 26% | HEY | 3 | With 61-Down, Jimi Hendrix's first single ... or a hint to the starts of 20-, 28-, 45- and 50-Across |
| 26% | INA | 3 | With 60-Down, on one's game ... and hint to the start of this puzzle's longest answers |
| 26% | BORN | 4 | "___ to Run" (Bruce Springsteen song that closed out Jon Stewart's tenure on "The Daily Show") |
| 26% | GOODBYE | 7 | 1998 song by the girl group Spice Girls, and maybe the end of a conversation |
| 25% | HEY | 3 | "___, Soul Sister," 2009 song by rock band Train, and maybe the start of a conversation |
| 25% | POWEROFTWO | 10 | Indigo Girls song with the chorus "Adding up the total of a love that's true / Multiply life by the ..." |
| 25% | ITHINKHAILTO | 12 | Start of a quote by 53-Across, when asked to name his favorite song |
| 25% | CANT | 4 | "___ Drive 55," song by Sammy Hagar about a driver who refuses to be held by speed limits and just wants to race |
| 25% | NUMLOCK | 7 | Click this to turn a keypad with 0 to 9 on and off |
| 25% | TOERRISHUMAN | 12 | Start of a Pope line about fallibility ... as shown by 19-, 25-, 42- and 55-Across? |
| 25% | ACUTABOVE | 9 | On another level, or a clue to the starts of 3-, 4-, 11- and 27-Down |
| 25% | WHERETHE | 8 | With 43-Across, an exciting place, and a hint to the starts of the starred answers |
| 25% | SAX | 3 | Instrument with a solo in Springsteen's "Born to Run" |
| 25% | STATEBIRD | 9 | One with a bill voted on by U.S. lawmakers? |
| 24% | SEEYOUAGAIN | 11 | 2015 song by rapper Wiz Khalifa featuring Charlie Puth, and maybe part of a response to 24a: 3 wds. |
| 24% | PUTINAGOODWORD | 14 | Recommend, with "for," and a hint to the start of 20-, 25- and 44-Across |
| 24% | NOTHINGDOING | 12 | "Forget about it!" ... or a clue to the starts of 20-, 27- and 47-Across |
| 24% | CANT | 4 | "I ___ Drive 55," song by Sammy Hagar about a driver who refuses to be held by speed limits and just wants to race |