Turning Point halftime show latest: Mysterious Kid Rock show will be pulled from X due to licensing restrictions

Conservatives have been offered a MAGA-friendly alternative to Bad Bunny’s Super Bowl halftime show

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MAGA is set to hold its very own All-American Halftime Show in protest of the 2026 Super Bowl halftime musical acts, with one NFL legend confirming he will be watching.

Former Green Bay Packers quarterback Brett Favre tweeted that he will be watching Kid Rock, Brantley Gilbert, Lee Brice and Gabby Barrett taking the stage at the Turning Point USA event.

“Not familiar with Bad Bunny so don’t know if his music is good or bad. I’m just going to watch what I know Lee Brice, Kid Rock All-American Halftime Show,” Favre said.

Turning Point USA, founded by the late Charlie Kirk, announced its alternative halftime show amid mounting conservative criticism over Bad Bunny’s selection as the Super Bowl halftime performer.

It will air as Bad Bunny takes the Super Bowl stage. The MAGA-centric show will air on TPUSA’s YouTube, X, and Rumble channels, as well as on conservative networks like OAN.

His performance takes place a week after his latest album Debí Tirar Más Fotos became the first Spanish-language record to win Album of the Year at the Grammys.

Despite harsh criticism from Trump voters, more Americans are interested in watching Bad Bunny perform in Sunday’s Super Bowl halftime show than Turning Point USA’s MAGA fest.

A YouGov America survey released Friday found that 35 percent of respondents prefer Bad Bunny’s show compared to 28 percent who said they were more interested in the Kid Rock-headlined event.

Key Points

• How to watch Turning Point USA's 'All-American Halftime Show'
• What we know about MAGA’s alternative Super Bowl halftime show
• Americans prefer Bad Bunny halftime over Kid Rock's performance: Poll

Here’s the line-up for TPUSA’s Super Bowl halftime show

TPUSA’s Super Bowl halftime show — being staged as an alternative to the show at Levi’s Stadium, which will feature Bad Bunny — is set to include four American musicians.

The event will be headlined by Kid Rock, a singer and rapper who is a strong supporter of President Donald Trump.

The other three performers will be country music singers Brantley Gilbert, Lee Brice and Gabby Barrett.

The event will be streamed live on YouTube, Rumble and X.

California Gov. Gavin Newsom skewers TPUSA's halftime show in new post

California Governor Gavin Newsom criticized Turning Point USA’s alternative Super Bowl halftime show, which is being headlined by Kid Rock and staged in protest of Bad Bunny.

Newsom — who is expected by many to run for president in 2028 — wrote in a post on X that his critics will be “VERY BUSY WATCHING ‘KID ROCK’ PERFORM FOR 35 PEOPLE, THREE SCOOTERS, AND A CONFUSED NURSE AT TRUMP’S GOLDEN MEADOWS RETIREMENT FACILITY IN FLORIDA.”

“HOPEFULLY NO CHILDREN PRESENT!!!” he added.

Alabama senator encourages Super Bowl viewers to tune into TPUSA's show

Senator Tommy Tuberville urged Super Bowl viewers to tune into TPUSA’s halftime show before slamming Bad Bunny as “woke.”

“Good luck to the 13 Alabamians competing in the Super Bowl today,” Tuberville, an Alabama Republican and former college football coach, wrote on X on Sunday afternoon.

“I also encourage everyone to tune in to @TPUSA’s All-American Halftime Show rather than watching Woke Bad Rabbit,” he wrote.

Vice President JD Vance says TPUSA's show has 'fantastic lineup'

Vice President JD Vance took to social media earlier this week to boast about Turning Point USA’s All-American Halftime Show’s lineup.

“Fantastic lineup for the TPUSA halftime show, including the great Bob Ritchie AKA KID ROCK,” Vice President JD Vance wrote on X.

Country singer Brantley Gilbert defends decision to perform at Turning Point USA’s controversial halftime show

Brantley Gilbert has cited his love for America as a reason why he’s performing at Turning Point USA’s All-American Halftime Show, which has been organized in protest of the NFL’s 2026 Super Bowl music acts.

TPUSA, the right-wing political organization founded by late conservative activist Charlie Kirk, announced last October that it would host an alternative show February 8 — the same night as the NFL’s Super Bowl, which will see the New England Patriots face off against the Seattle Seahawks. Along with Gilbert, artists performing at the TPUSA event include Kid Rock, Lee Brice, and Gabby Barrett.

The event has drawn widespread criticism for its overtly political framing and cultural messaging, with some observers calling the “all-American” branding exclusionary while Puerto Rican superstar Bad Bunny headlines the official halftime show.

Amid the controversy, Gilbert shared a statement with Fox News to explain why he’s performing at the event.

“​​I’m a songwriter who grew up, and still lives in Jackson County, Georgia, whose goal in the music business was to sell out the local theater a few miles from my house and somehow make my living writing songs,” he said. “I’m a recovering addict with the history of all the bad choices that come with it. I’m not proud of those choices, but I am proud of the choice I’ve made to live in another direction.”

Read more from The Independent’s Amber Raiken

President Donald Trump will not be in attendance at Super Bowl LX

President Donald Trump will not be in attendance at the Super Bowl this year — and took the opportunity to criticize this year’s performers. .

Trump, who attended last year’s Super Bowl, described the 2026 lineup as “a terrible choice” that “sows hatred.” However, he cited travel concerns as his primary reason for not attending, telling the New York Post, “It’s just too far away.”

The NFL’s selection of Bad Bunny has drawn conservative criticism due to his predominantly Spanish-language music and stances on immigration, with one song featuring an imitated Trump voice apologizing to immigrants.

However, the frontman for Green Day, also expected to perform on Sunday, has repeatedly denounced Trump.

Frontman Billie Joel Armstrong has notably altered lyrics in American Idiot to “I’m not a part of a MAGA agenda” and leading a chant calling him a “fat bastard.”

Turning Point USA shares video of Charlie Kirk saying Super Bowl should be 'reflection' of what 'you want society to embody'

Conservative nonprofit Turning Point USA shared a video of its late founder, Charlie Kirk, discussing how the Super Bowl should be a “reflection” of American values.

TPUSA is set to host the All-American Halftime as singer and rapper Bad Bunny takes the Super Bowl halftime stage.

The organization’s new event is in response to conservative outrage over the Puerto Rican singer’s planned performance.

“When you have the most televised event for the entire year, that should be a reflection of the virtue that hopefully you want society to embody,” Kirk says in the clip, shared by TPUSA on social media.

“That's why we've made the All-American Halftime Show,” the conservative organization notes in the post.

Kid Rock's comments about underage girls resurface before TPUSA show

Kid Rock, who is headlining Turning Point USA’s halftime event Sunday, has been in the news leading up to the show over previous comments he made about underage girls.

During a 2001 Saturday Night Live performance, the rocker reportedly made problematic comments about child actresses Mary Kate and Ashley Olsen, who were around 14 or 15 at the time, according to Penn Live.

“Why is every guy in America waiting on these chicks to turn 18?” the singer reportedly said on the show. “I mean, you know what I’m saying? If there’s grass on the field, play ball.”

The comments resurfaced ahead of the All-American Halftime Show, which TPUSA described as a “patriotic event proudly celebrating American culture, freedom and faith.”

The Democrats’ account on X slammed the comments, writing, “The face of the MAGA halftime show.”

The singer was already trending on social media for his 2001 song “Cool, Daddy Cool,” which includes a lyric about young, underage girls.

“Young ladies, young ladies, I like ‘em underage,” he sang on the track. “See some say that’s statutory.”

The late rapper Joe-C then adds, “But I say it’s mandatory.”

Kid Rock appeared to address the controversy on Instagram, sharing a Kobe Bryant quote that was titled “Mamba Mentality.”

“Learn to love the hate,” it read. “Embrace it. Enjoy it. You earned it. Everyone is entitled to their own opinion, and everyone should have one about you. Haters are a good problem to have. Nobody hates the good ones. They hate the great ones.”

Green Day’s Billie Joe Armstrong warns ICE officers that Trump admin will drop them ‘like a bad f***ing habit’

Green Day frontman Billie Joe Armstrong made a direct appeal to Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers to quit their jobs and warned that the Trump administration will one day “drop” them.

The band kicked off the Super Bowl weekend by headlining the FanDuel Party & Spotify party in San Francisco Friday night, where Armstrong gave the crowd a potential preview of Sunday’s performance.

“This goes out to all the ICE agents, wherever you are,” Armstrong said. “Quit your s***ty ass job. Quit that s***ty job you have. Because when this is over, and it will be over at some point in time, Kristi Noem, Stephen Miller, JD Vance, Donald Trump — they’re gonna drop you like a bad f***ing habit.”

Green Day will open Super Bowl LX on Sunday.

More from The Independent’s Rhian Lubin

Nashville bars plan to switch to TPUSA halftime: Report

Several popular bars in downtown Nashville plan to turn off the Super Bowl at halftime — and switch to the All-American Halftime show, according to a report.

Steve Smith, who owns multiple bars in Nashville’s entertainment district, including Kid Rock’s Big A** Honky Tonk & Steakhouse, told The Tennessean his businesses “will not be watching the Super Bowl halftime.”

Smith said his other businesses, which include Tootsie’s Orchid Lounge, Honky Tonk Central, Rippy’s Honky Tonk and The Diner, will also change the channel.

Meanwhile, Kid Rock’s other Nashville business, the Detroit Cowboy restaurant, will be closed Sunday.

Another downtown bar called Redneck Riviera, owned by John Rich, also told the newspaper that it plans to switch to TPUSA’s programming at halftime.

Not all bars and businesses in Nashville plan to make the switch. Friends in Low Places, a bar co-owned by Garth Brooks and Trisha Yearwood, will host a Super Bowl watch party and will play the entire Super Bowl as scheduled, according to the report.

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