PISCATAWAY -- After years of standing beside Bruce Springsteen at concert venues around the world, E Street Band member Steven Van Zandt took center stage at Rutgers University's commencement Sunday.

The 66-year-old musician gave a 30-minute graduation speech passing on wisdom from his years as a rock musician, actor, activist and entrepreneur. Rutgers gave "The Sopranos" actor an honorary Doctor of Fine Arts degree, making him "Dr. Van Zandt."

Here are some of the lines from Van Zandt's speech that got some of the loudest applause and the biggest laughs from the crowd at High Point Solutions Stadium in Piscataway.

On getting an honorary Doctor of Fine Arts degree from Rutgers after barely graduating high school:

"I am honored to be here, to be with the proud alma mater of James Gandolfini. I finally get to go to college in my home state of New Jersey. Just like my parents hoped. A little late, but a nice gift on Mother's Day. Top of the world, Ma!"

On his unlikely role as commencement speaker:

"I'm here as a cautionary tale. I am the world's greatest adviser, not because I'm smart, but because I have screwed up in every way possible. So, when I suggest something, I can speak with real authority because I most likely did the opposite with a not very good result."

On turning his high school garage band into a career:

"Everybody who had an option, took it. College, the military, a legit job, they moved away, whatever. And when the dust cleared, there were only two guys left standing in New Jersey: me and Bruce Springsteen."

On his success with Springsteen:

"I'd like to tell you an inspiring-type commencement story about how dedicated and persistent we were following our dream against all the odds. But the truth is we were freaks, misfits and outcasts incapable of doing anything else. We hung in there because we had no choice."

On President Donald Trump's lack of support for the arts:

"We are the only country in the world where art is considered a luxury. You are going to have to change that. You might have to change administrations. But your generation will put art back in the classrooms and back as an essential part of our quality of life for all of society."

On the benefit of being from New Jersey:

"We were lucky because we had less pressure simply by not being New York or Philadelphia. We also had low expectations. More importantly, the world had low expectations of us because we were from Jersey. We were the underdogs that somehow overcame the odds. Nobody saw us coming."

On the wisdom of Rutgers' "Jersey roots, global reach" motto:

"Embrace your Jersey roots and authenticity. Jersey strong. It doesn't matter where you're from. You're in the Jersey family now."

On leaving the E Street Band in the 1980s to concentrate on global political activism:

"A decision for the history books that will never be written and a featured spot in the 'Museum of Stupid.' First advice: Never leave your power base if you are lucky enough to have one. 'Born in the U.S.A.' comes out and sells a gazillion copies. And while the rest of the band is getting rich and buying their mansions, I'm hiding under a blanket in the back seat sneaking past a military blockade in Soweto while I research what's going on in South Africa. What a shmuck."

On the need for graduates to carry on the activism of previous generations:

"Be aware the biggest threat to this country is religious extremists. Some foreign. Mostly domestic . . . Don't be confused by all these cute scientific changes like global warming, climate change. Just remember this. It's pollution. It's poison. Ok. There's no acceptable level of poison in our air, food, ground or water. None, zero, zip."

Kelly Heyboer may be reached at kheyboer@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @KellyHeyboer. Find her at KellyHeyboerReporter on Facebook.