Kid Rock rallies Trump supporters at RNC as rocker leans into politics
Kid Rock appeared at the Republican National Convention, performing just ahead of former President Trump's speech. Fox News Digital takes a look at how he went from rock music to politics.
Kid Rock has been on the music scene for decades, rising to fame with the release of his 1998 album "Devil Without a Cause."
Although he was originally known for his memorable stage persona, over the years the singer has become more and more outspoken about his political views. He's been vocal about his support for former President Trump in all of his presidential runs.
He performed the final night of the Republican National Convention just ahead of Trump's speech this week.
For the convention, Kid Rock redid his 2000 song "American Bad A--" to include references to Trump. He began his performance by asking the audience to stand and raise a fist before leading it in chants of "Fight, fight!" and "Trump, Trump!"
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One notable lyric change happened toward the end of the song. Istead of singing the original line of "Smell the aroma, check my hits / I know it stinks in here ‘cause I’m the s---," he sang, "I know it stinks in here ‘cause Trump's the s---," censoring himself on the last word.
In the chorus, the song typically has a chant of "Hey, hey!" but this time, Kid Rock urged the audience once again to yell Trump's name and "fight."
He finished his performance by saying, "Ladies and gentlemen, get ready for the most patriotic American bada-- on earth, President Donald J. Trump." Kid Rock then introduced UFC CEO and President Dana White, who spoke immediately before Trump gave his speech.
During his own speech, Trump spoke about Kid Rock, saying the rapper had called him and asked him if he could be involved with the convention.
"He became a friend of mine over the last ten years, and he's amazing," Trump said. "Everyone loves him. I didn't even know how big he was."
He said Kid Rock pulls in crowds of 35,000 to 40,000 regularly and remarked, "I think he's making so much money he doesn't know what the hell to do with it."
This week, Kid Rock did find use for his money. He donated $50,000 to a fundraiser created to offer support to those wounded ing the July 13 shooting in Butler, Pennsylvania, during a Trump rally.
Trump has authorized the fundraiser, which has raised over $6 million, well over its original goal of $1 million. It was created by Meredith O'Rourke, Trump's national finance director and senior adviser.
Earlier this year, Kid Rock discussed his turn toward politics in an interview with Rolling Stone.
"I’m not going to get it right every time," he admitted, "but I know my heart’s right. I want the best for this country.
"I knew that could be a career ender," he said of becoming a vocal supporter of Trump. "But I was betting that there were a lot of like-minded people out there. … That mother------ likes to win. He likes to cheat in his f---ing golf game. I want that guy on my team. I want the guy who goes, ‘I’m going to fight with you.’
"I’m one of the polarizing people, no question. Sometimes I b---- about other people, then I look in the mirror and I’m like, ‘Oh, yeah, why don’t you shut the f--- up too?’"
Last year, Kid Rock made waves by making another political statement when he shot up a number of Bud Light cans after Anheuser-Busch released a marketing promotion with transgender influencer Dylan Mulvaney.
Kid Rock discussed the controversy during a November episode of "Hannity," telling host Sean Hannity he is "uncancelable."
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"I've always tried to live that there's no dollar amount on God's green earth that would get me to not be able to be who I am," he said.
He explained that his issue wasn't with Mulvaney, but with Anheuser-Busch.
"We can coexist in public places," Kid Rock said of Mulvaney. "You might not be my first dinner invite, you know what I mean? And I'm probably not yours. … I'm cool with you, that's how most people are."
While Kid Rock achieved mainstream success in the late '90s with songs like "Bawitdaba" and "Cowboy," he'd actually been releasing music for many years at that point. The Michigan-born musician first established himself in the Detroit hip-hop scene in the late '80s as part of the Beast Crew.
At 17, he signed his first record deal with Jive Records, but it didn't last long. Mike E. Clark, a producer who cut his first demos, told the Detroit Free Press in 2015 he was dropped by the label when "Vanilla Ice came out and stunk things up" in 1990, something that he said "devastated" him.
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Music attorney Tommy Valentino told the publication, "His attitude now was, 'I'm not going to count on any record company to make me a star.'"
His second and third albums were released by independent labels, and, during this period, Kid Rock continued to develop his sound. Many of those who worked with him then, as well as contemporaries like Uncle Kracker, said he was motivated by fame.
"He loved when we went somewhere to eat and somebody recognized him," drummer Bob Ebeling remembered. "He had this whole reward system in his head that didn't exist in other people's heads. When people recognize you and want a piece of you, it was the equivalent of being wealthy. He just ate it up."
"We were at a restaurant in Royal Oak, a bunch of us hanging out, and he said, 'Man, my next record … I've come up with this thing," Al Sutton, co-founder and engineer of White Room Studios, recalled at one point. "I'm going to do a redneck, s----kicking rock 'n' roll rap band.' Everybody was laughing — 'So that's it, eh?'"
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As fans will recognize, this became the style of music he was known for. He was signed to Atlantic Records in 1997 after executives watched him perform live, and the next year he released "Devil Without a Cause," his breakthrough album.
He's been a household name ever since.
In September, the musician shared the Detroit Free Press article on X, formerly Twitter, saying that he had read it but he'd "really never taken the time to reflect how hard I worked, how blessed I am and how so many great friends and people were so instrumental in my career.
"Sitting on the lake this morning in Northern Michigan re-reading it about brought a tear to my eye. A happy tear of reflection and gratefulness! Here’s to hard work and all of my hard working friends, fans and family!"