Kid Rock has nuanced thoughts about Kendrick Lamar's performance at Super Bowl 2025.

The "All Summer Long" singer offered his two cents on the rapper's halftime show in a new interview with Real Time With Bill Maher. "To put it nicely, it wasn't my cup of tea, but I gotta respect it," the musician said. "Here's why: You know, I grew up loving, emulating hip-hop. All things hip-hop. Breakdancing, DJing, graffiti, rapping. And so I understand the culture a little bit more than most… And when I say 'most,' I mean white people."

Rock indicated that he admired Lamar's attitude more than his music. "Man, this kid pretty much came out, figuratively, with both middle fingers in the air, doing what he does for the people who love what he does, unapologetically, and I don't think he gives a frog's fat ass what anyone thinks about it," he said. "That's pretty much how I built my career. I gotta respect it."

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The singer also speculated about the motivations behind the NFL booking Lamar for the coveted slot. "How did he get there?" Kid Rock asked. "How did he get that gig? Jay-Z. What happened there?"

He continued, "This was the epitome of DEI. This was the epitome of DEI blowing up. Because the NFL was on this DEI, 'end racism,' all this stuff. They got Jay-Z. They're bookin' this. Kendrick Lamar goes out there and basically turns DEI into an IED."

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Kendrick Lamar performs at the Super Bowl 2025 halftime show.

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For the uninitiated, that's diversity, equity, and inclusion being transformed into an improvised explosive device. "It's like, it's all Black people, or all people of color, speaking to his crowd, in the hood, Black people," he said. "It was like the most exclusive thing ever, and I'm like, 'F--- yeah, that's awesome.' I'm laughing my ass off."

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The musician also thinks one particular athlete deserves the credit for creating a social climate that led to Lamar's hiring. "I think Jay-Z and Kendrick Lamar should both send Colin Kaepernick a bundt cake and a six-pack of beer and a thank-you note with a bunch of money in it," Rock claimed, "because without him kneeling and getting everyone's panties in a bunch over the [national] anthem — self included — I don't think that happens."

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Elsewhere in the interview, Rock bragged about the diversity of his band. "Half my band's liberal, or gay, or Black," he said. "I have one of the most diverse bands out there — not because of this DEI s---, just because they're the best at what they do, who all love each other and get along."