HOW MUCH BS CAN YOU HANDLE? Same facts. Your choice of how deep to go.
JUST A SHOT. I have things to do.
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Kid Rock recruited outspoken Trump critic Eminem for his new Christian album — despite their very public political differences.
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The two Detroit rappers made a pact years ago, and Kid Rock just revealed how it helped make this unlikely collaboration possible.
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Some Eminem fans criticized the partnership, but Kid Rock says the musicians have a message for politically divided America.
GIVE ME ALL THE BS. I’ve got time.
Kid Rock and Eminem have spent decades making music that would probably send a church choir running for the exits.
Now they’re making Christian music together.
And the two Detroit-area rappers, who have landed on opposite sides of America’s political divide, have a message for people who can’t even get through Thanksgiving dinner without arguing about Donald Trump.
Kid Rock, one of the president’s most enthusiastic celebrity supporters, has recruited Eminem, who campaigned for Kamala Harris in 2024, for a song called “7 Sins” on his forthcoming Christian album, Halfway 2 Jesus.
During an October 10 appearance on My View with Lara Trump, Kid Rock explained that their unlikely collaboration grew out of a friendship that has survived decades of musical changes, political disagreements and personal differences.
“We said years ago, we said, ‘Man, let’s not let politics divide us.’ And we never did,” Kid Rock recalled.
When he invited Eminem to participate in the album, Kid Rock said his longtime friend understood what he was trying to accomplish.
“Two little foul-mouthed white rappers from Detroit maybe could set a good example for the rest of this country,” he suggested, explaining that political disagreements don’t have to end friendships.
Their relationship dates back to Detroit’s music scene in the 1990s, long before either performer became involved in the country’s increasingly heated political battles.
Eminem appeared on Kid Rock’s 1998 breakthrough album, Devil Without a Cause, contributing to the decidedly non-Christian track “F— Off.”
Kid Rock later appeared in Eminem’s 2013 music video for “Berzerk.”
Their political differences are hardly a secret. Kid Rock has appeared alongside Trump at rallies and other events, while Eminem has publicly criticized the president and introduced former President Barack Obama at a Harris campaign rally in Detroit in October 2024.
Yet their friendship survived.
In the foreword to his new album, Kid Rock wrote that he was particularly proud to have Eminem participate.
“We differ politically and on other things, but we’ve stayed friends through it all,” he explained.
He said he hoped the collaboration would set an example for people who had lost friends or stopped talking to relatives because of political differences.
Not everyone was impressed.
When the album’s track listing first appeared, some Eminem fans questioned whether the collaboration was even real. Others wondered why the rapper would work with one of Trump’s most recognizable celebrity supporters.
Complex reported that a representative for Eminem confirmed his participation, putting doubts about the collaboration itself to rest.
The controversy highlighted the very divisions Kid Rock says he hopes the song will help bridge.
Kid Rock, meanwhile, has been promoting the album as a deeply personal project centered on faith, forgiveness and second chances.
During his Fox News interview, he discussed his Christian beliefs and his hopes that the music might help heal some of the country’s divisions.
But the rocker has also made clear that embracing religious themes doesn’t mean abandoning his famously rough-around-the-edges personality.
The 17-track album, scheduled for release October 17, includes the single “James 1:17 (Jesus Is King),” along with contributions from Rascal Flatts singer Gary LeVox and country artist Jimmie Allen.
Kid Rock has also discussed his dissatisfaction with traditional church music, explaining that he wanted to create something that better reflected his musical tastes.
“Growing up Catholic and going to Catholic church, I was always like, I have to confess this is boring. This music is terrible,” he said while discussing the inspiration for the project.
The album represents a considerable departure for a performer whose career has included hard-rock anthems, rap collaborations and songs celebrating drinking and partying.
But it’s Eminem’s participation that has generated some of the biggest headlines.
The full collaboration has not yet been released, and Eminem has not offered a detailed public explanation of his decision to participate.
Kid Rock, however, has made his reasoning clear: he believes friendship should be able to survive political disagreement.
It’s an unusual message coming from two musicians whose careers were built partly on controversy, confrontation and offending people.
And perhaps that’s what makes it interesting.
Two Detroit rappers who once collaborated on a song called “F— Off” are now making music about faith and forgiveness.
That’s quite a career arc. Kid Rock and Eminem disagree about Trump, agree about friendship, and somehow managed to record a Christian song together.
Meanwhile, half the country can’t survive Thanksgiving dinner without declaring somebody a threat to democracy.
Maybe the next album should feature Congress.
