There was speculation regarding who the “huge surprise guest” was on the flyer. Political commentator Tucker Carlson went on to introduce WWE Hall of Famer and popular musician Kid Rock during the second night of the Rock the Country music festival in Gonzales via Weekly Citizen.
Jason Aldean capped the previous night of the inaugural event held at Ascension Parish’s Lamar-Dixon Expo Center.
It has been noted that the slate of music acts for the two days in Gonzales, which both had effectively perfect spring weather, included Hank Williams Jr., Big & Rich featuring Gretchen Wilson, Uncle Kracker, Gavin Adcock, Sadie Bass, Koe Wetzel, Travis Tritt, Elvie Shane and Kolby Cooper.
During the introduction for Kid Rock, whose career started in the late 1980s, Carlson noted he did not play a musical instrument and called himself “an unemployed talk-show host,” an apparent reference to his termination from Fox News last year.
The 54-year-old commentator had been employed with the television network for some 14 years, working before that for MSNBC, PBS and CNN.
Over the last year, Carlson has been garnering millions of views through his “Tucker Carlson Uncensored” video posts to his X (formerly known as Twitter) and YouTube accounts.
“I woke up this morning and I thought, I’ve got to go to Gonzales, Louisiana and open up for Kid Rock,” he said to the crowd. “What am I going to say?
Carlson stated that he had no idea until he arrived in the suburban area south of Baton Rouge and walked through the crowd, which was estimated to be around 25,000 people each day, according to a festival news release.
“The country that I experience when I walk through this crowd, or when I wake up in my town of about 100 people in a rural area, is a beautiful country filled with beautiful people,” he told the crowd.
Carlson has also referred to the City of Gonzales population, which is around 12,000 people according to Census data, and how the outdoor concert drew double that amount. Following the speech, Kid Rock and his band launched into Devil Without A Cause from his popular 1998 album of the same name.
Tucker Carlson was the opening act for Kid Rock show in Louisiana.pic.twitter.com/GNWdHWc3oC
— Citizen Free Press (@CitizenFreePres) April 8, 2024
