Kid Rock hints at touring retirement, calls for unity in video message
The 51-year-old Michigan rocker says his days of big tours could come to an end with his upcoming tour, which includes two September Pine Knob dates.
Adam GrahamKid Rock says his upcoming tour could be his final large scale outing in a video released to his social media channels on Monday.
"I’m not trying to sell tickets, 'oh this is the last tour, you better come out and see me,' but it very well could be for the unforeseen future," Rock says in the 4-minute clip. "At 51 years old, it’s not getting any easier to do jumps and carrying on on-stage. But I’m really keeping myself together, I’m getting prepared mentally, physically, working out every day, trying to eat healthy, all that (expletive), 'cause I want to be just top notch. I want to be at my peak for this tour, because I really don’t know for the unforeseen future if we’ll do a big tour again."
Rock — who in the video is wearing a fedora, eyeglasses and a sleeveless Waffle House vest, and standing in front of a Harley Davidson light fixture — doesn't rule out future concerts. But he implies they may be smaller outings or one-off shows as opposed to the 24-date tour he announced earlier on Monday, which includes two shows at Pine Knob, Sept. 16 and 17. Tickets go on sale on Friday via Ticketmaster channels.
"Will we play some select shows in the future in the years to come? Possibly, maybe bring back the crews, just do a few key things. But being in tip-top shape, still being in what I would call the tail end of my prime, I want to make this one big, and if it is the last one, I want to do it right," he says. "So this is a very special tour to me."
The tour, named after his upcoming album "Bad Reputation," launches in April and includes an April 16 date at Van Andel Arena in Grand Rapids.
Rock is also set to release three new songs at midnight on Tuesday: a song called "Last Dance," which he described as a "rock and roll" song about his parents' 50-year marriage; "Rockin'," a country-R&B song; and "We the People," a "hard rock-rap tune," about "all the craziness" in the world today, he says.
Part of that craziness, he says, is the "polarization" in the country, "the way the country is headed," "social justice" and "being attacked" for his support of Donald Trump. "We the People" is his answer to everyone, he says.
"I don’t mind taking a good punch," says Rock, "but I hit back, (expletive), and I hit hard."
But he also wants to unite people, he says.
"Eventually I’d really like to get back to trying to bring people together," Rock says. "We can believe differently, I think. It’s one of the things that’s made this country great," adding the "powers that be want to divide us" but that "united we stand, divided we fall."
agraham@detroitnews.com
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