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Kid Rock had a very violent response following Bud Light's collaboration with transgender influencer Dylan Mulvaney, but trans advocates told him it was time "he transitioned to 'Adult Rock' by growing the f*** up."
Mulvaney, who has risen to fame on TikTok with her Day 365 Of Girlhood video series, revealed on Sunday to her Instagram followers that Bud Light had sent her a personalized can with her face on it to commemorate a year since she began her gender transition.
The partnership has drawn condemnation from some social media users, prompting calls for a boycott of Bud Light and its parent company, Anheuser-Busch. Chocolate makers Hershey's faced a similar response to a Canadian ad campaign for International Women's Day in February that included a transgender rights activist.
The row over transgender brand ambassadors is symbolic of a wider debate about the inclusion of transgender women in female issues and spaces. Some say transgender women should be treated the same as other women, while others say they are different and that hard-won women's rights must be protected.
Rock—given name Robert James Ritchie—posted a video to his social media accounts which started with him standing with his back to the camera wearing a baseball cap backwards which read MAGA (Make America Great Again).
When he turned around to look at the camera, Rock, 52, had a message for the beer brand.
"Grandpa is feeling a little frisky today. Let me tell you as clear and concise as possible," the rapper said as the shot widened to reveal Rock holding an assault rifle.
Rock then cocked the gun and began shooting a rapid fire of bullets at several cases of Bud Light which had been placed on top of a table by a river.
He shot at the cases of beer until they burst open and liquid poured out of them before he turned back to the camera, where he raised his middle finger.
"F*** Bud Light and f*** Anheuser-Busch," Rock shouted, referring to the parent company which owns the popular beer brand.
He never mentioned Mulvaney by name in his video, which has been seen more than 213,000 times on Instagram and 2.3 million times on Twitter in the two hours since it was posted.
But transgender advocates slammed the violent video, with one saying it made her feel "sick" and "heartbroken."
"It felt violent and threatening, and made my fear for the people I love who are trans come to the fore yet again as hate is celebrated. What are we becoming as human beings that this kind of behavior is tolerated?" Susie Green, community director of GenderGP, a transgender health provider, told Newsweek.
"Cheered on even. It's sickening and shameful."
As for Gemma Stone, the co-founder of news site Trans Writes, Rock's display was a perfect "example of fragile masculinity" and in the video he "managed to come across as even less masculine than the incredibly feminine Dylan Mulvaney, whom his impotent protest is about. Bravo Kiddo."
"I hope Kid Rock has a very fun time buying things he doesn't like politically and then shooting them in his garden. But it would probably be better if he transitioned to Adult Rock by growing the f*** up," Stone told Newsweek.
The writer added that she was more concerned about Bud Light's support of the transgender community as it comes under increasing attacks in the U.S. including hundreds of proposed bills in different state to strip back transgender rights and access to healthcare.
"What I want to know is what are they doing to support their transgender staff and staff with transgender family amidst this moral panic? How are they working to oppose the over 300 anti-trans bills in the U.S. currently? What are their policies in regards to trans healthcare? Pronouns on a can is a gesture but its an empty one if they aren't putting in the work," Stone told Newsweek.
Conservative commentators reacted with anger upon Mulvaney's Instagram post revealing her face on the can of Bud Light.
"The good news is that Bud Light tastes like rain water that someone siphoned out of a tin bucket so it should be very easy to boycott," Matt Walsh, a conservative commentator, tweeted on Sunday.
"Boycott Bud Light and NEVER DRINK IT AGAIN EVER," tweeted Mike Crispi, a podcast host and former Republican New Jersey primary candidate for Congress.
Other Twitter users pointed out Bud Light had been a partner of LGBT Pride "for over 20 years," while some said other major beer brands had also shown solidarity with the LGBTQ+ community.
"Good luck finding another beer," wrote Ed Krassenstein, a social media personality. "The problem for them is that virtually every major beer company... have multiple programs that also support the LGBTQ+ communities. LGBTQ+ support isn't the problem. Bigotry is the problem!"
Anheuser-Busch told Newsweek the personalized can was sent to Mulvaney as "a gift to celebrate a personal milestone and is not for sale to the general public."
A spokesperson for the company also said it "works with hundreds of influencers across our brands as one of many ways to authentically connect with audiences across various demographics. From time to time we produce unique commemorative cans for fans and for brand influencers, like Dylan Mulvaney."
Mulvaney started documenting her transition on TikTok, where she has over 10 million followers, and has partnered with several companies including fashion brand Kate Spade.
Update 4/4/23, 8:28 a.m. and 11:26 a.m. EST: This article was updated to include comments from Stone, Green, additional information and more context.
About the writer
Shannon Power is a Greek-Australian reporter, but now calls London home. They have worked as across three continents in print, ... Read more