Over the course of five months, Kid Rock will travel the country with the Rock the Country concert series. For any fan of Kid Rock, they know his love and support for America. Wanting to celebrate what he labeled “250 Years of Freedom”, the festival will include numerous big names in music. But recently, Shinedown decided to withdraw their name from the lineup, not long after the band’s drummer criticized Ludacris for doing the exact same thing.
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The latest news to come from the Rock the Country concert series surrounded Shinedown announcing their exit from the festival. Getting ahead of the news, the band wrote in a statement, “Shinedown is everyone’s band. We feel that we have been given a platform to bring all people together through the power of music and song. We have one boss, and it is everyone in the audience. Our band’s purpose is to unite, not divide. With that in mind, we have made the decision that we will not be playing the Rock the Country festival.”
Understanding that their decision would cause some backlash, Shinedown added, “We do not want to participate in something we believe will create further division. And to our fans, thank you for supporting and believing in us. We love and appreciate you always.”
[RELATED: Kid Rock Announces ‘Freedom 250 Tour’ For 2026]
Shindown Backs Out As Rock The Country Lineup Expands
While Shinedown isn’t the first band to back out of a festival, the decision came after drummer Barry Kerch shared his opinion on Ludacris dropping out. “I really, really don’t care. You can keep your politics to yourself. I have no opinion one way or the other on Kid Rock. I love his music. This is about music. Ludacris wasn’t tough … I mean, it’s not like he needs the money, jeez. If he’s not tough enough to stick it out, that’s just silly. That’s him being a coward, in my opinion.”
Although blunt, the comments quickly drew attention online and added another layer to an already tense situation surrounding the festival.
Even without Shinedown in the lineup, the Rock the Country concert series promotes names like Kid Rock, Jason Aldean, Blake Shelton, Jelly Roll, Riley Green, Miranda Lambert, Ella Langley, Nelly, Gavin Adcock, Brooks & Dunn, Lynyrd Skynyrd, and many, many more.
Kicking off on May 1 in Bellville, Texas, the Rock the Country concert series will run until September 12 in Hamburg, New York. And ready to hit the road, Rock promised, “7 massive shows in 7 small towns.”
(Photo by Aaron J. Thornton/Getty Images for iHeartRadio)
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