Kid Rock to headline Turning Point USA’s alternative Super Bowl halftime show

Kid Rock will headline the alternative “All-American” Super Bowl halftime show helmed by Turning Point USA.

TPUSA, co-founded by the late right-wing political figure Charlie Kirk, announced plans for its own halftime show last fall to celebrate “Faith, Family and Freedom.” The move follows conservative backlash over the selection of Puerto Rican superstar Bad Bunny to headline this year’s Super Bowl halftime show.

“We’re approaching this show like David and Goliath,” Kid Rock said in a statement about the upcoming show. “Competing with the pro football machine and a global pop superstar is almost impossible … or is it?”

The “Bawitdaba” musician last appeared on the Billboard 200 albums chart nearly 10 years ago, in 2017, with the release of “Sweet Southern Sugar,” which peaked at No. 8. Kid Rock is undoubtedly the David in a makeshift competition driven by the staunchly culturally conservative wing of the MAGA movement.

Puerto Rican superstar Bad Bunny, on the other hand, continues to dominate the charts globally and in America with his record “Debí Tirar Más Fotos,” which achieved massive success, debuting at No. 1 on the Billboard 200, Top Latin Albums, and Top Streaming Albums charts, and was Spotify’s most listened-to artist globally for the fourth time in five years.

Bad Bunny, the clear Goliath, made history with the album, which was the first-ever Spanish-language hit to win Album of the Year at this year’s Grammy Awards. He also picked up a Grammy for best música urbana album and called for “ICE Out” before saying “we’re not savages, we’re not animals, we’re not aliens, we are humans, and we are Americans.”

Before agreeing to the Super Bowl performance, Bad Bunny initially did not want to bring his “Debí Tirar Más Fotos” tour, which has been running since November, to the U.S. due to growing concerns that his concerts could become sites of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) raids, according to an interview he gave to i-D Magazine published in September.

“But there was the issue of — like, f‑‑‑ing ICE could be outside [my concerts],” he said. “And it’s something that we were talking about and very concerned about.”

The NFL’s decision to feature Bad Bunny as the halftime headliner aligns with the organization’s ambitions to build an international audience. This past season, the NFL hosted eight games outside the U.S., including the United Kingdom, Germany, Spain, Brazil and Australia.

In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter last week, Oliver Schusser, head of Super Bowl halftime show sponsor Apple Music, applauded the NFL and Roc Nation’s selection.

“Pick any artist that you would actually put on that stage, and then imagine, will 100 percent of the people be happy with that artist?” Schusser said. “I’m very proud to be working with them on this, and they made a great choice.”

In addition to vocal Trump supporter Kid Rock, the TPUSA lineup includes Brantley Gilbert, Lee Brice, and Gabby Barrett. The show will air on TPUSA’s socials, as well as Daily Wire+, Real America’s Voice, TBN, CHARGE!, The National News Desk, NTD.com and OAN News.