Fact Check

Kid Rock Canceled 6 Concert Dates with Tim McGraw, Citing 'Wokeness'?

McGraw made headlines in September 2024 due to an Instagram post expressing his support for women's rights.

Published Sept. 30, 2024

 (Facebook page America's Last Line of Defense)
Image courtesy of Facebook page America's Last Line of Defense
Claim:
Kid Rock canceled six concert dates with Tim McGraw, saying: "I'm not getting booed for his wokeness."

In September 2024, the Facebook page America's Last Line of Defense posted a meme claiming the musician Kid Rock had canceled six concert dates with country star Tim McGraw. The meme consisted of a photo collage of Kid Rock and McGraw paired with text stating:

Kid Rock Cancels Six Concert Dates with Tim McGraw: "I'm Not Getting Booed for His Wokeness"

The caption that accompanied the meme read:

McGraw's recent "bold political statement" put him in the crosshairs of a boycott.

(Facebook page America's Last Line of Defense)

Some readers seemed to interpret the rumor as a factual recounting of real-life events. For example, one commenter wrote: "Seriously, why can't these so called actors and musicians just keep their 'pie holes' shut when it comes to the political arena!" Another wrote: "I love how Kid Rock stands up for his principles!!!!"

However, there was no credible evidence that Kid Rock had canceled any planned concert with McGraw. No such concert appeared on the "Tour" section of Kid Rock's official website — either the version available at the time of writing or the most recent previous version archived by the Internet Archive's Wayback Machine, which was dated Aug. 5, 2024. Likewise, no joint Kid Rock-Tim McGraw concerts appeared on the version of McGraw's official tour page available at the time of writing or on the most recent archived version, dated Aug. 17, 2024.

Similarly, a Google search for the quote attributed to Kid Rock in the meme, "I'm not getting booed for his wokeness," returned no relevant results.

Rather, the rumor about Kid Rock canceling multiple concerts with McGraw originated with the Facebook post from America's Last Line of Defense — part of ALLOD, a network of websites and social media pages that describes its output as being satirical in nature. The account's Intro section reads:

The flagship of the ALLOD network of trollery.
Nothing on this page is real.

The meme also featured a box in its lower left corner that included a "Satire" rating, as well as a disclaimer stating: "Nothing on this page is real."

Neither the meme nor the caption specified which of McGraw's political statements had allegedly upset Kid Rock. However, a week before the America's Last Line of Defense post, McGraw made headlines for expressing support for women's rights in a Sept. 21, 2024, Instagram post celebrating the birthday of his wife, fellow country musician and actor Faith Hill.

In the caption of that post (archived), McGraw wrote:

Our girls could not have a better role model in their lives as how to be an incredibly strong woman. And how to believe in themselves and be in charge of their lives (every aspect of their lives)! Let's honor the women in our lives with respect and make sure that we fight for their rights right alongside them!

America's Last Line of Defense and its related accounts and websites have a history of making up stories for shares and comments.

Snopes has previously addressed similar satirical claims about Kid Rock's interactions with other musicians that originated from accounts affiliated with America's Last Line of Defense, including the assertion that he refused to let Taylor Swift onstage with him and a rumor that Beyoncé offered him millions of dollars to join him on stage at his concerts.

For background, here is why we alert readers to rumors created by sources that call their output humorous or satirical.

Sources

Cote, Jacqueline Burt. "Tim McGraw Breaks Silence Following Backlash From His Bold Political Statement." Parade, 26 Sept. 2024, https://parade.com/news/tim-mcgraw-breaks-silence-following-backlash-bold-political-statement.

Ibrahim, Nur. "Kid Rock Refused to Let Taylor Swift Join Him on Stage?" Snopes, 17 Sept. 2024, https://www.snopes.com//fact-check/taylor-swift-kid-rock-stage/.

Lee, Jessica. "Why Snopes Covers Satire and Parody." Snopes, 26 July 2024, https://www.snopes.com//notes/snopes-satire-parody/.

Liles, Jordan. "Beyoncé Offered Kid Rock Millions of Dollars to Join Him on Stage at His Concerts?" Snopes, 8 May 2024, https://www.snopes.com//fact-check/beyonce-kid-rock-concerts/.

Rock, Kid. "Tour." Kid Rock, https://kidrock.com/pages/tour. Accessed 30 Sept. 2024.

Shows and Appearances | Tim McGraw. https://www.timmcgraw.com/tour. Accessed 30 Sept. 2024.

Writer, Olivia Bellusci Contributing Entertainment. "How Tim McGraw Just Subtly Revealed His Political Stance." Newsweek, 24 Sept. 2024, https://www.newsweek.com/entertainment/celebrity-news/how-tim-mcgraw-just-subtly-revealed-his-political-stance-1958765.

Caroline Wazer is a reporter based in Central New York. She has a Ph.D in history.