Kid Rock is releasing a Christian album, “Halfway 2 Jesus,” that features a collaboration with fellow Detroit rapper Eminem, and he says the pairing is meant to prove that political disagreements don’t have to break friendships.
Speaking on “My View with Lara Trump” Saturday, Kid Rock described a nearly 40-year friendship with Eminem that has survived sharp political differences between the two.
“We said years ago, we said, ‘Man, let’s not let politics divide us.’ And we never did. And so when I asked him to be part of this… he totally got it,” Kid Rock said.
He said he hopes the two of them can model something the rest of the country has lost.
“Two little foul-mouthed white rappers from Detroit maybe could set a good example for the rest of this country,” he said, arguing it’s possible to disagree politically and still be friends.
Kid Rock called Eminem a “class act” and said the freedom to hold and voice differing opinions is central to what makes America work.
“Since when can you not express your points and your views and your opinions?” he said, adding that he doesn’t think politics belongs onstage.
The album itself grew out of a renewed focus on his faith following the assassination of Charlie Kirk.
“After Charlie Kirk was assassinated, like a lot of people, I started to become closer to my faith,” Kid Rock said.
But he pushed back on any suggestion this is a sudden conversion story.
“I didn’t get saved. I’m still Kid Rock. I’m still going to drink a beer and smoke a cigar,” he said. “I feel like I’ve always been right with God.”
He also pointed out that his birthday, Jan. 17, 1971, and his middle name, James, line up with the Bible verse James 1:17, which he said “basically says all good things come from God.”
Kid Rock described the album as built around forgiveness and second chances, and said he wants it to help heal some of the country’s political division.
“This record is about second chances and forgiveness. It’s about trying to heal some of the division in our country,” he said.
He’s planning to take the music on the road with a format he’s calling a rock-and-revival hybrid.
“I wanted to create the songs that I wanted to go to church and hear,” he said. “And I want to have revivals, Saturday night revivals in arenas, stadiums, people drinking beer, having a good time, celebrating our Lord and Savior.”
He called the planned shows a “full-on monster rock show” and said he thinks they could “do a lot of good in the world.”
