When it was announced in the fall that Puerto Rican singer and rapper Bad Bunny was chosen to headline the Super Bowl LX halftime show, some people took it personally.
Why not an American pop star (he is) who speaks English (he does) and likes the president (good luck, did you watch the Grammy Awards?) The right felt slighted, again, this time as the victim of a vast left-wing conspiracy to turn football's biggest night against them.
So Turning Point USA, the conservative organization founded by Charlie Kirk and run by his wife, Erika Kirk, after his murder, came up with an idea. They had put on their own show in the barn, so to speak. The artists' sets would be in English, unlike most of Bad Bunny's material. And this great display of Americanness would take place during the Super Bowl, stealing viewers and ratings from that other guy with the funny name.
On Monday, Turning Point finally announced the lineup for its counter-event, the “All-American Halftime Show.” Described by Fox News as a “star-studded alternative to the Super Bowl halftime show,” the brightest luminary on the list is Kid Rock, who hasn't had a hit song since Obama's first year in office. The rest of the lineup is made up of country artists you'll probably have to Google to identify (Brantley Gilbert, Lee Brice, and Gabby Barrett). Their sets will be broadcast live on Sunday around 5 pm, at the same time Bad Bunny is scheduled to perform at Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara. He can be seen on Turning Point USA's YouTube, X, and Rumble channels, along with conservative networks such as Daily Wire+, Real America's Voice, TBN, and OAN. Additional musical artists will be announced, according to the organization's website.
Kid Rock when he wasn't wearing an American flag as a poncho.
(Pool photo)
“We're approaching this show like David and Goliath,” Kid Rock (aka Robert Ritchie) said in a statement. “Competing with the professional football machine and a global pop superstar is almost impossible… or is it?”
It's impossible, of course. Bad Bunny (aka Benito Antonio Martínez Ocasio) is an American pop sensation who has taken the world by storm with a vibrant mix of reggaeton, Latin pop, rap and R&B. The 31-year-old artist was the most streamed artist on Spotify in 2025 and made history just a couple of days ago at the Grammy Awards when he became the first Spanish-language artist to win album of the year.
It will reach an even broader audience on Sunday as part of the most-watched television event in the country when the New England Patriots take on the Seattle Seahawks.
But Kid Rock, 55, seems to have high hopes, and the chance to regain relevance is probably at the top of his wish list. There is no better way to get attention than to criticize the most popular artist. “Did he say he's going to have a dance party, wear a dress, and sing in Spanish?” said Kid Rock from Bad Bunny. “Cool. We plan to play cool songs for the people who love America.”
The “Bawitdaba” singer is familiar with right-wing outrage over halftime show costume choices and knows what it's like to have your patriotism questioned by a prepared mob. In 2004, he was one of several performers who accompanied Super Bowl star Janet Jackson. He angered conservatives when he used a defaced American flag as a poncho and then threw the flag/garment into the crowd.
But that was then, this is now. There are windmills to kill, crises to create, rings to kiss. And headlining a grudge concert provides a major distraction from the real problems plaguing Trump's presidency, whether it's the rising cost of living, Americans murdered by ICE agents under his watch, or the nausea-inducing contents of Epstein's files.
Are we still talking about those? Yes, we are. The New York Times identified more than 38,000 references to Trump, his family and his Mar-a-Lago club in the latest batch of emails, government files, videos and other records released by the Justice Department. Previous releases of Epstein's files, which the department released late last year, included 130 files with Trump-related references.
No wonder his followers need a distraction.
Bad Bunny can handle the pressure. He used his acceptance speech at Sunday night's Grammy ceremony in Los Angeles to condemn the Trump administration's nationwide immigration crackdown. “Before I thank God, I'm going to say 'ICE out,'” he said. “We are not savages. We are not animals. We are not aliens. We are humans and we are Americans.”
And also headliners at the Super Bowl.
