Eminem and Kid Rock have recorded a song together called “7 Sins,” landing the Grammy winner on the third track of Kid Rock's upcoming Christian album despite the two Detroit-area artists sitting on opposite ends of the political spectrum. The collaboration appears on Kid Rock's 17-track faith-based project Halfway to Jesus, which is scheduled for release on October 17.
A 13th Album Built Around Faith
The album's lead single, “James 1:17 (Jesus Is King),” premiered October 1, according to Consequence, marking the formal rollout of what will be Kid Rock's 13th studio album. As first reported by the New York Daily News, the 55-year-old musician, born Robert Ritchie, has become a prominent defender of the Trump administration, having stood by President Trump in the White House and on the campaign trail. Complex confirmed that Eminem appears on the recording, per the same outlet's report.
Beyond the Eminem feature, the tracklist includes Rascal Flatts lead vocalist Gary LeVox and country artist Jimmie Allen on the title track, and closes with a cover of Lee Greenwood's “God Bless the USA,” according to Consequence's reporting. Kid Rock posted notice on X that Halfway to Jesus will soon be released, and he also contributed a foreword statement to the project, per the Daily News.
From Catholic Upbringing to Genre-Blending Gospel
Speaking on Fox & Friends in August, Kid Rock explained that he was motivated to make a Christian rock album because he found traditional church music uninspiring during his Catholic upbringing and wanted to express faith through rock, country, and hip-hop, according to Blabbermouth. The official music video for “James 1:17 (Jesus Is King),” filmed at Kid Rock's Nashville honky tonk, was dedicated to Twisted Brown Trucker Band keyboardist Jimmie Bones following his 2024 ALS diagnosis and to a 17-year-old fan with an inoperable brain tumor, Blabbermouth reports. The video dropped alongside the album's tracklist reveal.
Two Detroit Rappers, Decades of Political Distance
Eminem, the 53-year-old Grammy winner born Marshall Mathers and born in Detroit, is politically further to the left than Kid Rock, who was born in Romeo, Michigan, per the Daily News. In 2017, Eminem released the music video “The Storm,” which premiered at the BET Hip-Hop Awards, declaring that fans supporting Trump were either for him or against him — a moment The Daily Beast calls a defining political stance for the rapper. Eminem's criticism of Trump and his supporters that year made him one of the president's most visible celebrity antagonists.
That history has made the “7 Sins” pairing a flashpoint. The announcement triggered immediate online backlash from anti-Trump fans on platforms like Reddit and X, with critics labeling Eminem “spineless” for collaborating with a prominent MAGA surrogate, the Beast reports. The friction is amplified by Eminem's own recent political activism: in October 2024, he introduced former President Barack Obama at a Kamala Harris campaign rally in Detroit, where Obama rapped lines from “Lose Yourself,” according to ABC News. That rally took place roughly two weeks before the 2024 election.
Shared Roots and a Common Hometown Team
Despite the political gulf, Kid Rock has publicly voiced affection for Eminem. Following Eminem's appearance at the 2024 Harris rally, Kid Rock expressed warmth toward his fellow Detroit-area artist, and Eminem replied on X that the two still agree on backing the NFL's Detroit Lions, according to Geo News. Kid Rock has said he and Eminem differ politically and on other things but have stayed friends, and he has said he hopes the friendship sets an example for people who have lost friends or stopped talking to family because they think differently, per the Daily News.
The two artists' bond stretches back to 1998, when they first joined forces on “F–k Off” for Kid Rock's breakthrough album Devil Without a Cause. That album sold over 11 million copies in the U.S. and received an 11x Multi-Platinum Diamond certification from the RIAA, according to River Cities' Reader, cementing Kid Rock as a mainstream star. In 2013, Kid Rock made a cameo in the Rick Rubin-produced music video for Eminem's single “Berzerk,” a video that also featured several top hip-hop figures, per Stereogum.
A Broader Political Backdrop
Kid Rock's political ties have only deepened in recent years. In February, he teamed up with Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., with the two recording a video promoting the Trump administration's health and fitness agenda, according to the Daily News. The contrast between that alliance and Eminem's Democratic activism has only fueled the debate among fans over whether “7 Sins” represents a genuine bridge across a deep divide or a compromise of Eminem's past anti-Trump stance.
