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Kid Rock was not impressed with Conan O’Brien’s joke at his expense at the 2026 Oscars.
O’Brien hosted the Academy Awards for a second year in a row on Sunday, taking aim at the Epstein files, Timothée Chalamet’s ballet controversy, and Rock’s alternate Super Bowl halftime show during his opening monologue.
“Tonight could get political, and if that makes you uncomfortable, there’s an alternate Oscars being hosted by Kid Rock,” O’Brien quipped. “It’s at the Dave & Buster’s down the street.”
He added there were “lots of tickets” still available.
Kid Rock fired back on social media the next day. “I love a good joke, even when I am the butt of it, unfortunately this was not a very good one,” the musician wrote on X, before taking the opportunity to promote his upcoming tour marking the 250th anniversary of the United States Declaration of Independence.
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Oscars host Conan O’Brien joked that Kid Rock was holding an ‘alternate’ ceremony at Dave & Buster’s (Getty)
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Kid Rock headlined Turning Point USA’s alternative to the NFL’s 2026 Super Bowl Halftime Show (YouTube/Turning Point USA)
“Either way, if you want to see a REAL good show this spring / summer that celebrates America and 250 years of Freedom – make sure you buy your tickets from (ugh) Ticketmaster for my Freedom 250 tour – The Road To Nashville. There is a reason for this, TRUST ME!,” Rock wrote.
O’Brien was poking fun at Turning Point USA’s “All-American Halftime Show,” headlined by Rock, which was arranged in protest of Puerto Rican superstar Bad Bunny headlining the official Super Bowl Halftime Show this year.
The right-wing nonprofit’s show aired simultaneously with the NFL’s halftime spectacle for people who were angry about the Latin Trap artist performing in Spanish. The award-winning rapper has also been a vocal critic of President Donald Trump.
However, Rock seemed to mime his way through his performance of his 1999 hit “Bawitdaba,” clips of which were quickly mocked on social media. The show was watched by a peak of 6.1 million viewers, while Bad Bunny’s halftime show set a new all-time global record with 4.157 billion total views in the first 24 hours across TV, YouTube, and digital platforms.
Rock, an outspoken supporter of the president, said beforehand that the Turning Point show was engineered for conservative Americans to celebrate their patriotism, adding that right-wing views are not represented in mainstream media.
“There’s a big portion of this country, like it or not, that’s underserved entertainment-wise,” Kid Rock said. “We’re just [going to] go play for our base. You know, people who love America, love football, love Jesus.”
The White House expressed support for Turning Point’s show, reposting a video of it on social media. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth wrote on X that his family had tuned in.
President Trump also bashed the official Super Bowl mid-game show in a post on Truth Social, labelling it “absolutely terrible” and “one of the worst, EVER!”