While the talk of the music world yesterday undoubtedly surrounded Bad Bunny and his headlining performance at the Super Bowl LX halftime show, another prominent aspect of the discussion centred upon Kid Rock and the All-American Halftime Show.
First announced back in October, the All-American Halftime Show was launched as a form of counter-programming – that is, a broadcast which effectively aims to draw attention away from something else. That something else was the official Super Bowl halftime show, which had booked Puerto Rican musician Bad Bunny as their star performer.
Much of the criticism surrounding Bad Bunny’s selection was partially inspired by the political climate within the US of late, with many critics wondering why an American artist was not chosen to headline the internationally-televised event. (Puerto Rico is, of course, a territory of the United States and Puerto Ricans such as Bad Bunny are in fact US citizens.)
Organised by Turning Point USA and described as a celebration of “faith, family, and freedom”, the event was scheduled to coincide with Bad Bunny’s performance on February 8th. So, while the Puerto Rican star was bringing out the likes of Lady Gaga and Ricky Martin for the affair, TPUSA was offering their viewers a very different alternative.
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“Turning Point read the room,” Kid Rock told Fox News ahead of the show. “They realised there's a big portion of this country who is underserved entertainment-wise.
“We’re just [going to] go play for our base. You know, people who love America, love football, love Jesus.”
While Bad Bunny’s performance was live from Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, California, the All-American Halftime Show was a pre-taped affair from Atlanta, Georgia filled with country and rock musicians.
Opening with a message from US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, and a (very brief) fireworks tribute to late TPUSA co-founder Charlie Kirk, the performance aspect launched with an instrumental electric guitar rendition of The Star Spangled Banner by Spencer Waasdorp.
Brantley Gilbert then took to the stage for performances of Real American and Dirt Road Anthem, before Gabby Barrett joined in to perform I Hope and The Good Ones. Barret was followed by Lee Brice, who had the longest appearance, with songs such as Drinking Class, new single It Ain't Easy Being Country, and Hard To Love.
The main event, so to speak, then followed, with Kid Rock appearing to perform his 1999 single Bawitdaba. Though arguably the most energetic set of the evening, it was immediately evident that Kid Rock's appearance was lip-synced, with publications such as Rolling Stone describing his appearance as “half-assed.”
After a brief instrumental interlude, Kid Rock was re-introduced to the stage, this time under his birth name Robert Ritchie, to perform an acoustic rendition of Cody Johnson’s ‘Til You Can’t.
“I awoke one Sunday morning, all alone with this song stuck in my head, and in that moment, something – or someone – spoke to me,” Ritchie told the crowd near the end of the song. “They said there was still a verse that needed to be written for this song, and to get up and write it down.”
"There's a book that's sitting in your house somewhere that could use some dusting off," he sang to mass applause. "There's a man that died for all our sins hanging from the cross. You can give your life to Jesus and he'll give you a second chance. 'Til you can't."
While Bad Bunny’s show managed to draw in plenty of positive responses due to the musical and cultural diversity at play, and the inclusion of messages such as “The only thing more powerful than hate is love” and “Together, we are America,” reactions to TPUSA’s event were less than stellar.
Top comments on YouTube include viewers noting that “All of these songs sound like a Ford commercial,” and that it “feels like I’m watching Country American Idol.”
Other criticisms have been levelled at Brice’s new track It Ain't Easy Being Country, which features the line “I just want to catch my fish, drive my truck, drink my beer,” though his muddled pronunciation drew comments from viewers celebrating his desire to “kiss my fish”.
Musician Kacey Musgraves, meanwhile reacted to the official Super Bowl performance by noting that it “made me feel more proudly American than anything Kid Rock has ever done.”
According to Variety, like viewership of the special peaked at around 5.7 million during Kid Rock’s performance, with the official YouTube video of the show is currently sitting at 20.57 million. By comparison, current projected figures put Bad Bunny’s Super Bowl performance at around 128 million viewers, while the official YouTube upload has drawn in more than 40 million.
