Kid Rock is hailed as Detroit's new rap wonder and is even compared to the Beastie Boys, since he seems to dominate the whole rap scene as the white kid in what is largely a Black movement. It certainly isn't like he came from out of nowhere. He was known in the underground music scene for nearly ten years, but 1999 has proven to be his big success.
     His former releases brought him respect in the rap community, but failed to yield commercial success, even though he toured with artists like Ice Cube, Yo Yo and Too Short. On one of his releases from the early ’90s, Grits Sandwiches for Breakfast, Rock had help from Too Short, D Nice, D Square, Chuck Chillout and others. He has no explanation for the commercial failure, but guesses one of the reasons might have been that his former record companies tried to model him into another sleek Vanilla Ice clone. "And that's just not me!" he grins.
     Following Grits Sandwiches for Breakfast he released The Polyfuze Method in '93 and Early Mornin' Stoned Pimp in '96. The release of his Atlantic Records debut, Devil Without A Cause, made him famous almost overnight and proved that a large audience was ready for his modern crossover--an infectious blend of rock, hip-hop and country served up with a dynamic stage show.
     Kid comes from the small town of Romeo, MI, close to Mount Clemens, and spent most of his formative years in Detroit, being signed to various labels such as Jive, Continuum, and his own Top Dog Records. But he hit the big time with Devil Without A Cause, an immediate success that earned him invitations to Woodstock and the 1999 MTV Awards. Events that are honors to some were for him just big parties . . . and partying is something Kid Rock can’t resist. "They were the biggest parties of the year; at least the biggest ones I've been invited to so far," he enthuses. "I'm still hoping for something bigger, better, louder, a real Millennium bash, but it seems to be a bit slow, so I have to make my own!"
     Rumor has it that Kid Rock celebrated his contract with Atlantic by partying so hard that he was arrested the same night. "It was in Mount Clemens and things got out of hand a bit. We all got drunk and somehow a fight started, the cops showed up and arrested us. I think I was flirting a bit hard with the wrong girl; she had a boyfriend who didn't like it. So we ended up in jail. And you know what? We were so drunk that we just didn't care. We kept on partying!"
     As hard as Kid Rock parties, he works even harder. He has toured with everyone from Limp Bizkit to Monster Magnet. During a short break, he flew to Germany to perform for the Skate World Cup and at a couple of festivals. He returned to America for more dates prior to his European tour.
     "I know that I didn't need to do it, but I wanted to,” he explains. “In America, people know us; we've got it made. But in Europe, we've got to win them over and that's a challenge. You've got to work hard for your success and you've gotta have a steady presence; that's the secret, so I'll be collecting my frequent flyer miles going back and forth all the time! Bands who're not putting in an effort won't make it because they're lazy bastards and they don't deserve it anyway!"
     His past is no bed of roses. In addition to trying to break through for a long time, he also experienced heavy drug use in the early ’90s and claims he had a narrow escape. "It's not that I'm Mr. Goody-Two-Shoes now, but I've got my priorities in order. I did have a rough time. I was such an idiot. I did everything, every drug, got up in the mornings and popped drugs. I think I did every drug known to mankind, smoked crack, boozed, dropped acid, you name it. I'm glad that I got out of it; a lot of my friends from that time didn't. It's important that I got out, because otherwise I wouldn't be here now!"
     When Kid Rock and his Twisted Trucker Band were invited to perform at one of Germany's biggest festivals, Rock Am Ring, they weren't offered the main stage, but the rather small New Talent Forum. Instead of bowing out, they decided to do it and were rewarded with an audience that looked like the Who's Who of the music business. Metallica, Cypress Hill, Monster Magnet, Biohazard and Suede were gathering to catch the performance. Hardly surprising that Kid is proud and can't help but boast.
     "Metallica started 20 minutes late just to catch our gig! Of course that was stroking our ego. How could it not be great? The majority of the audience was already waiting at the main stage for Metallica, while Metallica was watching us! I think they wanted to use the chance to watch our performance in peace and quiet. In the States, that's just not possible anymore."
     He isn't bothered that they are relatively unknown in Europe, but enjoys the fact that he can explore the different cities without being recognized by crazed fans. "Europe and America are so different. Of course, the tour buses are a lot better back home, but on the other hand, here I can just wander off and look around and nobody really knows me. If I'd do that anywhere back home, I'd get mobbed within minutes. There are always a couple of screaming girls who want my hat or something else, like everybody wants a piece of me!
     "It's definitely very different here than it is back home. Europeans don't seem to have the groupie mentality. In America there are nude girls in the audience at every show. I haven't seen that here. Oh hey, maybe that's a disadvantage! Ha ha ha! But honestly, it's pretty weird. There are girls who'd do absolutely everything just to get a backstage pass. I don't know what it is, but really, when you're on national TV in America, the girls love you. They all want you!" With a wolfish grin he adds, "And I'm not complaining!"
     Kid Rock must have known this would happen, because he broke up with longtime girlfriend Midori, a porn star, just before starting his tour. "I don't think that I could have a girlfriend right now. I mean, I wouldn't have much time for her anyway, and if you look at all the girls, woweee! I don't carry a few bags of sand with me when I go to the beach anyway! Ha ha ha!"