WILLIAMSBURG, Va. (WAVY) — Citing safety reasons, John Hinckley, Jr. said he has scrapped plans, for now, to open a music store in Williamsburg.
However, he has kept his plans to perform his music publicly in the new year.
Time has moved on for Hinckley, and he wishes others would move along with it. He said he’s no longer the man he was when he shot President Reagan in 1981.
He told 10 On Your Side he hoped to open a music shop and sell records and guitars in Williamsburg. Everything was set, but the response he got on social media made him change his mind.
“A lot of attention to it, a lot of publicity,” Hinckley said. “A lot of it was positive, but some was negative. And I didn’t like the negative comments because they made me think that the store might not be safe for the customers or for me. So I decided to not do the store, at least for now, until I get a better security system worked out.”
That dream has been put on hold, but another is about to come true — Hinckley will be performing 15 to 20 of his songs in Newport News in February.
“There will be adequate security,” Hinckley said. “I would not go forward with this if there wasn’t adequate security. So I would want the venue to be safe for me and for the people attending the show.
“My songs are upbeat songs about overcoming hard times. A lot of songs are autobiographical about my life and how hard things have been for me. That’s what I’m doing now with my music is trying to reach out to people in a positive way.”
The show will be Feb. 1 at 323 Center Ave. in Newport News. The show will begin at 3 p.m.
