Kacey Musgraves divides fans with immigrant children’s plea, faces boycott calls to ‘shut up and sing’
Kacey Musgraves is facing backlash after asking fans to donate to an immigrant children’s rights group as her birthday wish while kicking off her "Middle of Nowhere" tour.
On Friday, the country music star marked her 38th birthday on the opening night of her tour at the United Center in Chicago, Illinois. At one point, Musgraves paused her show and urged concertgoers to contribute to the Young Center for Immigrant Children's Rights.
"It’s a wonderful organization, and they help give aid — legal aid — and money to children whose parents have been deported unfairly," Musgraves said. "It’s not a political thing. It’s just, these kids need help."
She continued, "They have no guidance and no way to get through this thing without their homebase or their parents. So anyway, 50 cents, whatever the hell, I don't know, whatever you want to do but that would mean a lot to me."
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"If you don't want to, that's totally fine too," Musgraves added.
The eight-time Grammy Award winner's appeal was immediately met with applause and cheers from the crowd in Chicago. However, Musgraves' request drew a divided response online, including criticism from conservative political commentators.
"What is an unfair deportation?" Tomi Lahren, host of Outkick's "Tomi Lahren Is Fearless" podcast, wrote on X alongside a video of Musgraves' birthday request.
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"Kacey Musgraves stopped her concert to ask the audience to donate money for legal aid to kids whose parents have been deported ‘unfairly.’ How about donating money the help kids who's parents have been killed by illegal immigrants! What happened to the country music industry?" conservative influencer Vince Langman commented.
"Another TRAITOROUS woman who wants nothing more than to see our country fall," an X user chimed in.
"Shut up and sing Kasey (sic)!! Why do musicians think they Can draw a line in the sand? You alienate 50% of your audience," another commented.
Some critics declared that they would no longer support Musgraves and called for a boycott of her music and concerts.
"You just earned yourself a big ol’ boycott, you traitor," one detractor wrote. "Illegal aliens and their kids don’t deserve our patronage and neither do you!"
"I’m deporting Musgraves from all my music playlists," another X user commented.
Other social media users argued that Musgraves should donate her own money rather than ask fans to contribute.
"Kacey Musgraves is worth $15 million. Yet she’s asking fans who already paid $150 to $350 for tickets to donate to support the children of illegal aliens," one social media user commented. "If she cares that much, she can fund it herself and let them live in one of her multi-million-dollar mansions."
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"Everyone she is speaking too (sic) gave her their money when they bought tickets," another added. "She did not give the audience money. So now she has the money, shouldn't she donate to whatever cause she wants? She is actually on stage at a show that the audience had to pay to get admission to and now she is asking for more of their money. That's rude."
However, some of the "Dry Spell" singer's fans defended her on social media and praised her for speaking out on behalf of immigrant children.
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"Love this. 'It's not a political thing. It's just, these kids need help.' Exactly. More artists doing this please," one fan wrote on X.
"In all fairness, the kids didn’t do anything wrong," another wrote. "I don’t believe their parents were wrongfully deported, but I equally believe that their children, if retained in the United States by law, should be taken care of. We’re not f------ animals!"
"No boycott here!" an X user declared.
"Helping children caught in difficult circumstances is a worthy cause," one commenter argued. "At the same time, immigration enforcement and whether a deportation was lawful or justified are matters for the courts and policymakers not concert stages."
Fox News Digital has reached out to Musgraves' representatives for comment.
Meanwhile, Musgraves stood by her remarks on social media, taking to her Instagram Story to upload a post that read, "Kinda chic when kids don't face immigration court alone."
The singer also reposted a message shared by the Young Center's Instagram page, in which the organization expressed its gratitude to her.
"Thank you," the nonprofit wrote. "We appreciate your support of our work and mission to see unaccompanied immigrant children safe, free, and with their families."
Based in Chicago, the Young Center describes its work as pairing volunteers with attorneys and social workers to advocate for unaccompanied and separated immigrant children in government custody. Its website lists family unity, release from custody, fair proceedings and children's best interests among its priorities.
The nonprofit reported serving 1,975 children from 53 countries in 2024 and opening 1,388 new cases. Its 2025 annual report said children's average detention time increased from 30 to 198 days and requests for assistance from detained parents quadrupled from 2024.
Friday’s appeal extended Musgraves’ support for the charity. In April, resale platform Depop announced that 20 pieces from her wardrobe, including clothing from music videos and tours, would be sold in capsule drops. Women's Wear Daily reported that all proceeds would benefit the Young Center.
In announcing the sale, Musgraves described the beneficiary without discussing immigration enforcement.
"I also adore the fact that the sales are supporting a really beautiful cause," Musgraves said.
Musgraves also invited three brothers, ages 18, 14 and 12, to open three Texas shows in May after their family was released from ICE custody. The mariachi performers' family said they entered through the now-defunct CBP One appointment system in 2023 and sought asylum after fleeing violence in Mexico, KSAT reported.
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DHS said the family entered illegally and had been released into the country by the Biden administration. Responding to the family’s detention, DHS said federal law required custody while its immigration claims were heard.
"The law requires illegal aliens who show up at a port of entry without valid entry to be detained while all their claims are heard. You can look it up in the statute," a DHS spokesperson told KSAT. "Unlike the previous administration, the Trump administration is not going to ignore the rule of law."
Musgraves' latest remarks came as ICE enforcement reached record levels. Federal sources told Fox News Digital that agents made about 51,000 immigration arrests in July, topping the previous record of roughly 43,000 in June.
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"Every day, the brave men and women of ICE are arresting and DEPORTING dangerous criminal illegal aliens, including gang members, from our country," DHS said.
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The Chicago concert launched Musgraves’ North American arena tour, with Midland as the opening act. Official tour listings showed dates continuing through October.
Fox News Digital's CJ Womack contributed to this report.