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Here’s some news that genuinely shocked me: Kid Rock already had another gig lined up before Turning Point USA signed him to be the headliner of their “alternative” All-American White halftime show. Though to be fair, this wasn’t another instance of Kid Rock being asked to perform, but rather a tour he’s bringing to the masses messes. Kid’s “Rock the Country” tour was supposed to be a “festival for the people” set to begin May 1. Just as a reminder, the “country” he claims to be rocking has 50 states, yet the tour was only set to hold eight shows in eight towns. Except wait, it’s already down to seven towns after Anderson, South Carolina canceled on their hosting duties. You see, of the artists set for this tour, Ludacris, already backed out in mid-January due to backlash from his fans. Now, given the past week of everyone remembering Kid’s penchant for liking underage girls (lyrically, at least) and cozying up to fascism, bands Creed and Shinedown have also peaced out.
Less than a month ago, Creed and Shinedown appeared on a poster for the MAGA-coded event, consisting of “eight massive shows” taking place in “eight small towns.”
But as of Saturday, neither band was listed on the lineup on the official website, which now advertises just seven shows in seven towns, beginning May 1 in Bellville, Texas and ending Sept. 12 in Hamburg, N.Y.
Rapper Ludacris had already dropped out of his July 25-26 slot in Anderson, S.C. well before Friday, when Shinedown announced on Instagram that they’d be canceling their appearance.
“Our band’s purpose is to unite, not divide. With that in mind, we have made the decision that we will not be playing the Rock the Country Festival,” they wrote. “We know this decision will create differences of opinion. But we do not want to participate in something we believe will create further division.”
Shinedown drummer Barry Kerch told “The Vinyl Road” podcast in January that the band only learned of the “political leaning” of the event after they signed on to play, and for which they faced “tons” of backlash.
Creed does not appear to have publicly remarked on dropping out as a featured act for the Anderson show.
The cancellations went even further when officials in Anderson said the city would no longer host the festival, according to NBC affiliate WYFF.
Among the many still slated to perform in the other cities are stars such as Jason Aldean, Blake Shelton, Jelly Roll, Miranda Lambert, Brantley Gilbert and Nelly.
…Also this week, an X account that goes by the handle The Democrats highlighted Rock’s 2001 appearance on “Saturday Night Live,” during which he made remarks about then-14-year-old Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen.
“Why is every guy in America waiting for these chicks to turn 18?” he asked at the time. “If there’s grass on the field, play ball!”
Well, that SNL quote of Kid Rock’s is an extra helping of revolting dressed in illegal with a side of WTF?! Last week I called him a “tall drink of scuzz” and he really is living down to that title. Heading into the weekend, Kid didn’t seem rattled by the extensive collective throwing up over his character. By contrast, he tweeted a lengthy Kobe Bryant quote about learning to love the hate that ended with, “They hate the great ones.” I’m now waiting for the word “great” to file suit. Obviously I didn’t watch the fake halftime show, but some poor guy at The Hollywood Reporter was given the onerous task — he literally titled his article “I Watched Turning Point USA’s Kid Rock Halftime Show So You Don’t Have To” — and the most shocking detail I read was that Kid came out… in shorts! I thought they were touting themselves as the family friendly option?? The THR article also totally roasted Kid for doing very little live singing, lol. TP USA claims they scored 5 million viewers. Sure. Personally, I’d sooner believe they had to pay people to be there, as California Governor Gavin Newsom’s fantastic Twitter team joked on Sunday.
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