Kid Rock conducting diplomacy with the French out on the golf course?
Over the past decade or so, Kid Rock (whose real name is Robert Ritchie) has been more known for his politics than his music. Since 2016, the “Bawitdaba” rapper has been an outspoken supporter of President Donald Trump, and it seems that the two have developed a close friendship since Trump entered into politics.
Kid Rock has appeared with Trump at campaign rallies, performed at the 2024 Republican National Convention, and has even appeared with the president in the Oval Office to discuss policy and an executive order related to trying to fix the problems with the ticketing industry, which is obviously a topic that Kid Rock knows quite a bit about.
But I’m not sure how much he knows about French foreign relations.
Well apparently the rocker got a crash course in diplomatic relations during a golf trip with President Trump, when the president got a call from his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron.
As Kid Rock recalled during a recent appearance on Real Time with Bill Maher, Trump was taking work calls while out on the course, and one of those calls was from the president of France:
“I mean, the guy’s taking calls all day. He’s working while you’re golfing. The guy does not stop working, I think we can all agree on that. He works, he sleeps maybe four or five hours a night.
So we’re out there and Macron calls. And he’s like, ‘Blah blah blah,’ he’s talking, I’m kinda standing there. I’m standing next to his golf cart. He’s like, ‘Hey, I’m here with the great Kid Rock,’ like Macron knows who I am.”
Well apparently Trump wasn’t in the mood to talk to Macron, so he decided to hand the phone to Kid Rock – and then just drove off his in golf cart:
“He’s like, ‘Bob, say hello.’ So he gives me the phone, I’m like, ‘Hello Mr. President, I’m from the Paris of the Midwest, Detroit.’ And Trump leaves.
He leaves, and I’m like, ‘What else you been up to?'”
Can’t imagine what Macron was thinking during that call. Wonder if he’s ever heard “All Summer Long?”
Of course along with the responsibility of having to talk to the French president, Kid Rock also recently opened up on the cost that’s come with his friendship with President Trump, including the loss of corporate deals and late-night television appearances:
“My relationship with Trump, yeah, that canceled all the corporate deals coming my way. I don’t really get invited to be part of, you know, things like the NFL or things like that.
All the shows that I was so friendly with over the years, from all the late-night talk shows to my friend Jimmy Kimmel and Jimmy Fallon, I don’t really get invited on there anymore. But who’s to stay that won’t change.”
But he says that it’s also led to a newfound freedom to speak his mind without fear of risking his career:
“Years ago, when I went on this path to be more vocal and outspoken, I knew that stuff was going to go away. But man, let me tell you what freedom feels like. To be able to speak your mind, anywhere, anytime, and really exercise the freedom of speech that so many brave souls died for.
To be able to express that when I want and how I want and not worry about anything in between… it’s the biggest and most awesome feeling of freedom.”
Of course, sometimes it also means having to talk to the president of France.
