The Dublin-based rock band U2 just released a tribute song dedicated to Renee Good, the anti-ICE activist who was killed during an altercation with ICE officers in Minneapolis last month.
The song “American Obituary,” part of the six-track EP “U2 Days of Ash,” debuted on Wednesday, according to <a href="https://nypost.com/2026/02/19/us-news/u2-american-obituary-song-invokes-renee-nicole-good-ice-shooting-in-days-of-ash-ep/">The New York Post</a>. 
“Renee Good born to die free/American mother of three/ Seventh day January/ A bullet for еach child, you see,” the lyrics say in part.
“The color of her eyе/ 930 Minneapolis/ To desecrate domestic bliss/ Three bullets blast, three babies kissed/ Renee the domestic terrorist???”
The refrain says: “What you can’t kill can&#8217;t die/ America will rise/ Against the people of the lie/ I love you more/ Than hate loves war.”
U2 lead singer Bono <a href="https://propaganda.u2.com/">described</a> the new release as a “song of fury… but more than that a song of grief” in a statement <a href="https://propaganda.u2.com/">published</a> on the band’s digital fanzine, which is called “Propaganda.”
“Not just for Renee but for the death of an America that at the very least would have had an inquiry into her killing… for her family as well as the credibility of law enforcement and the critical role they play in keeping the peace, keeping the citizenry safe,” the singer said. 
He also tried to explain why he, an Irishman, is involving himself in American politics.
“U2’s been banging on about America most of our artistic life… this is a country we love and has loved us back. Amazingly,” Bono said. “Americans for the most part have given U2 and me in particular permission to mouth off… And on this stuff I think people know that I’ve been an equal opportunity pest on the left as well as the right.”
Despite these attempts to justify the song, the Irish recording artist got blasted on social media.
“It appears Ireland has stronger illegal immigration laws than the U.S. Maybe U2 could sing a song about that,” an X user <a href="https://x.com/clayton_be61039/status/2024288299825668277">replied</a>.
“As an American, I can comfortably say, I don’t give a sh** what any band thinks…especially a foreign band,” another commenter <a href="https://x.com/TexasExec16/status/2024308019928990078">agreed</a>.
“No songs dedicated to all the victims killed by illegal aliens …. Hmmm,” another <a href="https://x.com/Antillothegreat/status/2024288247870812644">observed</a>.
This is the second recently released mainstream “protest song” dedicated to anti-ICE sentiment. Far-left activist singer Bruce Springsteen <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/bruce-springsteen-releases-cringe-protest-song-about-minneapolis">released</a> “Streets of Minneapolis” in January after spending one day writing it. That song was also mocked online.

Bono

Irish Rock Band U2 Releases ‘American Obituary,’ A Tribute Song For Renee Good

Anti-ICE

Entertainment

Immigration and Customs Enforcement

Ireland

Music

Renee Good

World

“Got Woke? Knoxville Symphony does.” 
That message will be emblazoned on a mobile billboard and greet attendees of the Knoxville Symphony Orchestra as they arrive for a romantic date night featuring Valentine’s Day-themed music on Thursday and Friday. 
The mobile billboard seeks to spotlight a renowned clarinet player&#8217;s fight to remove DEI from the world of professional music and arrives courtesy of the Coolidge Reagan Foundation, a conservative nonprofit. James Zimmermann, the clarinetist, filed a lawsuit in December, accusing the Knoxville Symphony Orchestra of refusing to hire him based on his opposition to DEI. 
Zimmermann told The Daily Wire he won a blind audition for the principal clarinet position in September 2025 and was told by staff he would soon be on salary, only to have that opportunity fall away a few days later once the orchestra learned of his <a href="https://freebeacon.com/culture/how-racial-anxiety-conquered-an-orchestra-and-crushed-a-career/">previous DEI battle</a> with the orchestra in Nashville. 
“This whole scenario is much bigger than just me and this one little job in Knoxville. It&#8217;s the demoralization that every white guy feels that, ‘Hey, these orchestras don&#8217;t want me.’ They have openly stated, ‘We need our orchestras to be more diverse.’ All that means is they want fewer white guys in the orchestra. It&#8217;s very obvious,&#8221; Zimmermann told The Daily Wire. 
Images shared with The Daily Wire by the Coolidge Reagan Foundation show the multiple messages that will appear on mobile billboard vehicles outside the Tennessee Theater from 3-11 p.m. On both days, the orchestra is performing a concert called “Star-Crossed Lovers” at 7:30 p.m.
The images include statements such as “DEI ≠ Fairness,” “Go Woke, Lose Talent,” and “Your Tax Dollars Fuel Woke DEI Policies at the Orchestra.” The Coolidge Reagan Foundation also launched a <a href="https://www.wokesymphony.com">website</a> to highlight Zimmermann&#8217;s story. 
<div id="attachment_1042819" style="width: 2570px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-1042819" class="size-full wp-image-1042819" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/02/MixCollage-11-Feb-2026-04-46-PM-4128-scaled.jpg" alt="" width="2560" height="2560" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/02/MixCollage-11-Feb-2026-04-46-PM-4128-scaled.jpg 2560w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/02/MixCollage-11-Feb-2026-04-46-PM-4128-300x300.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/02/MixCollage-11-Feb-2026-04-46-PM-4128-576x576.jpg 576w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/02/MixCollage-11-Feb-2026-04-46-PM-4128-150x150.jpg 150w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/02/MixCollage-11-Feb-2026-04-46-PM-4128-768x768.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/02/MixCollage-11-Feb-2026-04-46-PM-4128-1536x1536.jpg 1536w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/02/MixCollage-11-Feb-2026-04-46-PM-4128-2048x2048.jpg 2048w" sizes=" (max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px" />Coolidge Reagan Foundation.</div>
According to a lawsuit filed by Zimmermann in Tennessee’s Sixth Judicial Circuit, the Knoxville Symphony Orchestra refused to hire him based on his politics. Zimmermann is suing for compensation he would have earned had he been given the job. 
“The Orchestra engaged in racial discrimination against Mr. Zimmermann, violating the results of its own screened audition, in violation of the Tennessee Human Rights Act,” a copy of the lawsuit shared with The Daily Wire said. “Had Zimmermann not been a white male, particularly a white male who had previously expressed opposition to DEI initiatives, the Orchestra would have proceeded with hiring him consistent with the result of its screened auditions.”
<div id="attachment_1042821" style="width: 2570px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-1042821" class="size-full wp-image-1042821" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/02/MixCollage-11-Feb-2026-04-47-PM-8822-scaled.jpg" alt="" width="2560" height="2560" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/02/MixCollage-11-Feb-2026-04-47-PM-8822-scaled.jpg 2560w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/02/MixCollage-11-Feb-2026-04-47-PM-8822-300x300.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/02/MixCollage-11-Feb-2026-04-47-PM-8822-576x576.jpg 576w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/02/MixCollage-11-Feb-2026-04-47-PM-8822-150x150.jpg 150w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/02/MixCollage-11-Feb-2026-04-47-PM-8822-768x768.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/02/MixCollage-11-Feb-2026-04-47-PM-8822-1536x1536.jpg 1536w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/02/MixCollage-11-Feb-2026-04-47-PM-8822-2048x2048.jpg 2048w" sizes=" (max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px" />Coolidge Reagan Foundation.</div>
After advancing through the screened audition process for the clarinet position, Zimmermann said Knoxville Symphony Orchestra personnel manager Mark Tucker informed him he had won, would soon be “on the payroll,” and would call him to follow up on September 17, 2025.
Instead, on September 18, Zimmermann says he received a phone call from the symphony&#8217;s CEO, Rachel Ford, who mentioned his previous musical job working for the Nashville Symphony. 
An email from Ford to Zimmermann, obtained by The Daily Wire, confirmed Zimmermann’s account. 
Ford told him in the email that “based on a number of items which have come to the attention of the Knoxville Symphony Orchestra regarding your employment with the Nashville Symphony, I regret to inform you that the [Knoxville Symphony Orchestra] has decided not to move forward with offering you a contract of employment.”
She added that there would be no further discussions on the matter. 
“We wish you the best in the future. Please know our decision is final and we will not participate in any ongoing communications related to this matter,” she wrote. 
Neither Ford nor Tucker responded to requests for comment. 
The controversy referred to by Ford erupted roughly six years ago when Zimmermann started speaking out against DEI measures at the Nashville Symphony. Eventually, he was fired after two minority musicians, oboe player Titus Underwood and Emilio Carlo, <a href="https://freebeacon.com/culture/how-racial-anxiety-conquered-an-orchestra-and-crushed-a-career/">accused</a> him of harassing them and making threatening and racially charged comments to them.
In the end, Zimmermann was fired after 12 years as the lead clarinet player. Six of his colleagues would later defend him in interviews with the Washington Free Beacon. Zimmermann acknowledges that he was not perfect throughout the situation, but said his firing was prompted, in large part, by politics. 
As that played out, both Underwood and Carlo got a Davidson County judge to issue temporary restraining orders against Zimmermann. Zimmermann has called those restraining orders “bogus” and noted that they were not later renewed.
Carlo and Underwood did not respond to requests for comment. In a <a href="https://www.wbir.com/article/news/local/knoxville/james-zimmermann-sues-knoxville-symphony-orchestra-for-alleged-discrimination/51-59429c8d-5d6b-4aa9-86a3-6815006f322b">statemen</a>t to local outlet WBIR, the Knoxville Symphony Orchestra cited the restraining orders. 
&#8220;The KSO made the decision to reject the Audition Committee’s recommendation and not hire Mr. Zimmermann due to legitimate safety concerns as confirmed by the Nashville Symphony,&#8221; the statement said. 
Zimmermann said that Ford did not mention the restraining orders during her call with Zimmermann, but instead said there were &#8220;items of interest&#8221; that he knew about. Zimmermann said he was never given a chance to explain his side of the story. 
“I have nothing bad to say about the people running the [audition]. It&#8217;s just about the CEO, who made the decision to not hire me, not ask me anything about the past, not ask my side of the story,” Zimmermann told The Daily Wire. “This is supposed to be the land of opportunity, and a blind audition gives you a chance to prove your skills, independent of your political views and race and gender and sex and all that.”
Zimmermann says he has heard from musicians all across the country who agree with him and have told him they hope the orchestra world abandons DEI once and for all.
Dan Backer, the president of the Coolidge Reagan Foundation, is a counsel for Zimmermann during the suit. 
“I&#8217;m just glad Coolidge Reagan is able to be there and keep the pressure on and make sure that everybody knows that when you set foot in Knoxville Symphony Orchestra, you&#8217;re not listening to the best music you could get, you&#8217;re listening to the wokest music you can get.”
On its website, the Knoxville Symphony <a href="https://knoxvillesymphony.com/aboutkso/history-mission/#:~:text=In%20May%202016%2C%20Aram%20Demirjian,Center%20and%20Washington%20Performing%20Arts.">boasts</a> that its programming emphasizes “music by living composers” and “artists from underrepresented groups.”
The Knoxville Symphony Orchestra <a href="https://knoxvillesymphony.com/support-the-kso/corporate-partners/#:~:text=generations%20to%20come.-,Sponsorship%20Opportunities,of%20concertgoers%20across%20East%20Tennessee.&amp;text=Knoxville%20Symphony%20Orchestra%20concerts%20and,%2C%20and%20Arts%20&amp;%20Culture%20Alliance.">receives</a> local and state taxpayer funding through the city of Knoxville, Knox County, and the Tennessee Arts Commission. It is unclear exactly how much the orchestra gets in grants. 
Neither the Nashville nor the Knoxville symphony orchestras responded to requests for comment.

hands playing clarinets in orchestra

He Won The Blind Audition — Then Woke Culture Took The Baton

Woke Music? Tennessee Orchestra Accused Of Targeting Clarinet Player Over DEI Stance

Classical Music

Diversity Equity and Inclusion (DEI)

Tennessee

Kid Rock has addressed speculation that he was lip syncing during his performance of “Bawitdaba” at TPUSA’s All-American Halftime Show, which was aired at the same time as the Super Bowl Halftime show on Sunday.
The country rock star said the problem was that he was “out of sync” with his DJ. Kid Rock, whose real name is Robert Ritchie, discussed what happened during an <a href="https://www.foxnews.com/video/6389008403112">appearance</a> on Fox News’ “The Ingraham Angle” on Monday night.
“My DJ, who actually raps that song with me, was not lit up,” Ritchie explained to Ingraham. He said it would have been easier for the TPUSA team to sync up the vocals if they were using a pre-recorded version of the song, and the fact that it was slightly off timing-wise is proof that he was really singing.
“&#8230;I’m jumping around the stage like a rabid monkey, rapping my song, and I’m taking breaths, and my DJ is filling in the other parts of it,” he went on. “I even told them when I saw the rough cut, I was like, you guys got to work on that sync. It’s off. So it was just a syncing issue that they had, and I know they tried to get it right. It was very difficult.”
Ritchie also tweeted out a more direct response to those who were speculating that he had lip-synced, calling the claims &#8220;fake news.&#8221;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
My halftime performance was pre recorded but performed live. No lipsycing like the haters and fake news are trying to report. When they synced the cameras to my performance on Bawitdaba, it did not line up as I explain in this video. <a href="https://t.co/k1x1RfI9RY">pic.twitter.com/k1x1RfI9RY</a>
— KidRock (@KidRock) <a href="https://twitter.com/KidRock/status/2021253773880881253?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 10, 2026</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
The TPUSA All-American Halftime Show outperformed all expectations. Millions of people tuned into the YouTube livestream, Charlie Kirk’s YouTube channel, and other partner sites streaming it, including DailyWire+.
It was pitched as an alternative for viewers who weren’t interested in watching Super Bowl Halftime headliner Bad Bunny, who only sings in Spanish and has expressed controversial views about President Trump and ICE enforcing immigration laws.
Ritchie also said he wasn’t overly impressed with Bad Bunny’s halftime performance.
“Like most people, I didn’t understand any of it,” the singer said. “I saw there’s a lot of dancers and a lot of big to-do stuff. And, you know, he said he wanted to have a dance party; it looked like he had one.”
“Not my cup of tea, but I don’t fault that kid for doing the Super Bowl, getting in front of a global audience,” Ritchie added. “I fault the NFL for putting him in that position and Turning Point for having to come out and have an alternative for people to watch. You know, it’s just — poor kid.”
President Trump also had a negative reaction to Bad Bunny’s performance on Sunday.
“The Super Bowl Halftime Show is absolutely terrible, one of the worst, EVER!” Trump wrote. “It makes no sense, is an affront to the Greatness of America, and doesn’t represent our standards of Success, Creativity, or Excellence,” the president posted on social media.
“Nobody understands a word this guy is saying, and the dancing is disgusting, especially for young children that are watching from throughout the U.S.A., and all over the World. This ‘Show’ is just a ‘slap in the face’ to our Country, which is setting new standards and records every single day — including the Best Stock Market and 401(k)s in History!”

Kid Rock

Kid Rock Blasts ‘Haters’ Claiming He Lip-Synced At TPUSA Halftime Show

Bad Bunny

Halftime Show

Super Bowl

TPUSA

U.S.

Apple Music Super Bowl LX Halftime Show

That Anti-American Super Bowl Halftime Show Should Be A Wake Up Call For Real Americans

That Anti-American Super Bowl Half Time Show Should Be A Wake Up Call For Real Americans

Blacks

Democrats

Donald Trump

Leftists

Matt Walsh

Opinion

Whites

There is something that goes on in American culture that is highly irritating to me.
If you notice everyone celebrating something that is politically Left-leaning in nature, people tell you that you’re crazy for pointing it out or being upset about it.
I&#8217;m not particularly upset by halftime shows at the Super Bowl, because in the grand scheme of life, who cares? It is not a big deal.
But the reason that some people are concerned or upset today about this year’s halftime show is because of what happened at the end of the performance.
I am not a Bad Bunny fan. I don&#8217;t know whether he&#8217;s a good bunny, a bad bunny, or the worst bunny. I have no gradation, no scale upon which to judge the badness of his bunnyness.
I do not know his music. I didn&#8217;t understand a word he was saying. As a person who does not traffic or listen to his music, I had no idea what he was saying during the halftime show.
I will admit that it felt to me like being in a car crash, and there was a person walking toward me, telling me that I needed to get out my insurance card in a language I did not understand.
<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/episode/ep-2364-a-very-bad-bunny-super-bowl"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="size-large wp-image-974957 aligncenter" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/09/511983dad25841c8b1ec058d75769bbe-1024x171.webp" alt="DailyWire+" width="1024" height="171" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/09/511983dad25841c8b1ec058d75769bbe-1024x171.webp 1024w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/09/511983dad25841c8b1ec058d75769bbe-300x50.webp 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/09/511983dad25841c8b1ec058d75769bbe-768x128.webp 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/09/511983dad25841c8b1ec058d75769bbe-1536x256.webp 1536w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/09/511983dad25841c8b1ec058d75769bbe-2048x341.webp 2048w" sizes=" (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></a>
<h3>The Pros</h3>
The show was beautifully produced. The couple getting married and mid-show, the kids falling asleep on the chairs was very, very charming. I have no problem with a lot of Spanish being in the show, because that&#8217;s what a lot of people in the United States speak; that&#8217;s totally cool. A lot of people in the United States speak a lot of second languages. I remember a few years ago Shakira and J. Lo did the halftime show, and I believe they did a song in Spanish. There are tens of millions of Latino Americans who contribute in unbelievable ways to our common project as Americans.
<h3>The Cons</h3>
First: No English at all, so people who don&#8217;t speak Spanish couldn’t understand what was going on. He could have been saying anything, and I would have had no idea what he was saying.
Second: To pretend that Bad Bunny is an apolitical figure is silly.
Bad Bunny is not an apolitical figure. He has never pretended to be an apolitical figure. When he showed himself on the Grammys and gave a Grammy to a little kid who looked precisely like an ICE detainee, don&#8217;t tell me that wasn&#8217;t on purpose. Of course it was.
But the major problem for me came at the very end of the halftime show. Bad Bunny walked through and announced every single country in the Western Hemisphere, starting geographically with Argentina and finishing with Canada. As he did, a bunch of people followed him carrying flags from various other countries that were not the United States.
Here is the problem: One of the truly amazing virtues of America is that you can both assimilate to the values of the United States and still keep the flavor of your old culture. One of the great things about America over the course of the last couple of hundred years is that many cultures merged into the gigantic stream that is the United States, which is why every American has eaten Mexican food, Italian food, and Chinese food.
And that&#8217;s wonderful. That&#8217;s great. The fact that you have weddings where you have people dancing salsa, and you have weddings where you have people dancing the hora, is wonderful.
I don&#8217;t think a whole lot of Americans object to that.
The salient question is this: Are you showing gratitude for America being unique? That’s why people focused on that part of the show.
Where was Bad Bunny&#8217;s gratitude?
There have been other shows where he&#8217;s refused to stand up for the national anthem. He is rich and famous because of the United States. He is living in splendor because of the United States. He&#8217;s one of the greatest recipients of American largesse ever.
If you&#8217;re born in Puerto Rico, you&#8217;re American. If you&#8217;re born in America, that is the greatest privilege that you can receive.
So, it is my opinion that you should show some gratitude for America being unique. It seems to me that American flags should have been all over the place in the middle of this demonstration.
This is something the political Left does that is totally wrong.
It&#8217;s astonishing to me. The political Left has the opportunity to grab the upper hand culturally with a lot of people and simultaneously celebrate the country. He could have done this entire show almost identically, with American flags everywhere, saying America means that you can have salsa dancing at your wedding, but that&#8217;s what&#8217;s amazing about America. You can do all that and still be an American who loves football and still be an American.
Football is a uniquely American sport. You can still be an American who is doing all the American things, and you can also enjoy these cultural variants.
This United Nations routine was not a celebration of America or a celebration of cultures that coexist peacefully in America.
His attempt to say we are all Americans by making some sort of pedantic geographic point that the Americas encompass the continents of North America and South America was silly. No one sees it that way.
When people say American, they believe that you are talking about the United States — as they should. Football is an American event. It is not the world&#8217;s biggest event. It is America&#8217;s biggest event. Not many people in Japan watch the Super Bowl.
This was not the World Cup. This performance at the World Cup or the Olympics would have made perfect sense because those are international events with a bunch of different countries.
What I am concerned about is the innate argument that is being made, that the greatness of America somehow must be subsumed under the rubric of “All countries are awesome, and America is somehow equivalent in some way to other countries.”
We are not. America is exceptional. It&#8217;s unique.
And ignoring that message is un-American.

A Very Bad Bunny Super Bowl

Ben Shapiro

Puerto Rico

Sports

United States

Country rock star Kid Rock pointed viewers toward Jesus and the Gospel during his set on Sunday as the headliner at the TPUSA All-American Halftime Show. 
The &#8220;Cowboy&#8221; singer delivered on all fronts as the alternative to the NFL’s Super Bowl halftime show that featured Bad Bunny, who performed his entire set in Spanish. The All-American Halftime Show drew millions of viewers eager for something different. 
Rock opened his set with his viral hit “Bawitdaba” from 1999. But later, the recording artist changed tracks entirely. As his set came to an end, Kid Rock came back out on stage and was reintroduced by his real name, Robert Ritchie. 
He said a new verse to Cody Johnson’s song “‘Til You Can’t” came to him one Sunday morning when &#8220;something or someone spoke to me.&#8221;
Ritchie said he believed there was “a verse that still needed to be written for this song.”
&#8220;There&#8217;s a book that&#8217;s sitting in your house somewhere that could use some dusting off,&#8221; he sang. &#8220;There&#8217;s a man that died for all our sins hanging from the cross. You can give your life to Jesus and he&#8217;ll give you a second chance. &#8216;Til you can&#8217;t.&#8221;
<iframe loading="lazy" title="TPUSA Presents: The ALL-AMERICAN HALFTIME SHOW" width="500" height="281" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/nJszMT9wZtQ?start=4152&#038;feature=oembed" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" referrerpolicy="strict-origin-when-cross-origin" allowfullscreen></iframe>
His performance ended with a tribute to TPUSA founder Charlie Kirk, who was assassinated last year. 
“If you’re gonna love somebody, hold ’em as long and as strong and as close as you can. Until you can’t,” Rock sang as an image of Kirk showed up on the screen with the caption, “In Remembrance of Charlie Kirk.” There were photos of Kirk and his widow, Erika, followed by the Bible verse Isaiah 6:8: &#8220;Here am I, send me.&#8221;
Brantley Gilbert and other country artists, Gabby Barrett, and Lee Brice also performed at the TPUSA All-American Halftime Show, which outperformed all expectations. Millions of people tuned into the YouTube livestream, Charlie Kirk’s YouTube channel, and other partner sites streaming it, including DailyWire+. 
“We’re approaching this show like David and Goliath,” Kid Rock said in a statement before the show, The Daily Wire previously reported. “Competing with the pro football machine and a global pop superstar is almost impossible, or is it? He said he’s having a dance party, wearing a dress, and singing in Spanish? Cool. We plan to play great songs for folks who love America.”
Social media lit up with fans celebrating the Super Bowl halftime show alternative, and later with viewers proud of how many people turned up and tuned in. 
“All in English, all talented, beautifully done,” one social media response <a href="https://x.com/mattvanswol/status/2020680122739609810">said</a>.
“It was truly awesome. Felt so good. And so proud,” another commenter <a href="https://x.com/GNFranzia/status/2020681341726036350">agreed</a>. 
“I was proud of my country. Felt blessed for my family. This is what it should be!” a third person agreed, echoing what so many others were saying.
As of Monday, the All-American Halftime Show had close to 20 million views on the official TPUSA YouTube channel.

‘Died For All Our Sins’: Kid Rock Points To Jesus And The Gospel During All-American Halftime Show

Kid Rock Adds Verse To Song During All-American Halftime, Tells Fans To Follow Jesus

Christianity

The TPUSA All-American Halftime Show outperformed all expectations, with an incredible 6.1 million people <a href="https://x.com/andrewkolvet/status/2020677703213728037?s=46&amp;t=o-U3qwC25WnWaylJ0oeG7Q">tuning in</a> to watch on the YouTube livestream, another 1 million watching on Charlie Kirk’s YouTube, and “monster” numbers on other partner sites streaming it including Rumble and DailyWire+.
Social media lit up with fans celebrating the Super Bowl halftime show alternative, and later with viewers proud of how many people turned up and tuned in.
“All in English, all talented, beautifully done,” one social media response <a href="https://x.com/mattvanswol/status/2020680122739609810">said</a>.
“It was truly awesome. Felt so good. And so proud,” another commenter <a href="https://x.com/GNFranzia/status/2020681341726036350">agreed</a>.
“I was proud of my country. Felt blessed for my family. This is what it should be!” a third person agreed, echoing what so many others were saying.
Secretary of War Pete Hegeth posted on X, saying the War Department was “proud to support” the show. “GOD BLESS THIS GREAT COUNTRY,” he <a href="https://x.com/secwar/status/2020680005681062203?s=46&amp;t=5nB3R1hthzMlYMrXjZyN8Q">wrote</a> in the caption.
The lineup for “The All-American Halftime Show” was announced last week. Kid Rock, Brantley Gilbert, Lee Brice, and Gabby Barrett took the stage in a show meant to celebrate faith, family, and freedom.
“We’re approaching this show like David and Goliath,” Kid Rock said in a statement, as The Daily Wire previously <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/turning-point-usa-unveils-star-studded-all-american-halftime-show-to-rival-super-bowls-bad-bunny">reported</a>. “Competing with the pro football machine and a global pop superstar is almost impossible, or is it? He said he’s having a dance party, wearing a dress, and singing in Spanish? Cool. We plan to play great songs for folks who love America.”
This show aired at the same time as Super Bowl LX’s official halftime show featuring Latin music star Bad Bunny. The singer’s selection has sparked significant backlash from many conservatives, including President Donald Trump.
Bad Bunny has been critical of the Trump administration’s illegal immigrant crackdown and refused to tour in the United States last year because he said he didn’t want ICE raiding his concerts. Many football fans were also frustrated that the entire show would be in Spanish.
The success of TPUSA’s alternative, pro-America halftime entertainment proves that the battle of David versus Goliath continues, with the possibility of the underdog winning in the end.
The Left still thinks it owns the culture. They preached to us at the Grammys. They preached at the Super Bowl. But we are fighting back. <a href="https://get.dailywire.com/?utm_campaign=christmas&amp;utm_medium=paid&amp;utm_source=performancemax&amp;utm_content=na_subscriptions&amp;utm_campaign=dwplus&amp;utm_medium=paid&amp;utm_source=performancemax&amp;utm_content=na_subscriptions&amp;cid=dwplus&amp;mid=x&amp;xid=0&amp;gad_source=1&amp;gad_campaignid=19747119763&amp;gclid=Cj0KCQiAhaHMBhD2ARIsAPAU_D63rmpYzOrZ3VE5c5N47ky3yS7gXlvrw39o8jpL0ODtCEq98LqvWwwaAsUtEALw_wcB" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-sk="tooltip_parent">Join DailyWire+</a> for entertainment that has your values at its core.

Illustration by Daily Wire staff

Millions Tune In For TPUSA All-American Halftime Show During Super Bowl

Super Bowl organizers tapped singer Brandi Carlile to perform“America the Beautiful” at the big game on Sunday, and the vocalist said she viewed that as a good opportunity for her to represent “the queer community.”
The 11-time Grammy Award winner did an <a href="https://variety.com/2026/music/news/brandi-carlile-america-the-beautiful-super-bowl-interview-1236655795/">interview</a> with Variety to discuss singing the patriotic song at the game. Unlike many other recording artists who have made headlines recently for trashing America, Carlile indicated that she still loved this country. But she also said that she believes the song “America the Beautiful” has an underlying message about radical change, which as an LGBT activist, she fully supports.
“I have my own moral code, my own moral imperative, that I have to answer to at the end of the day, as a wife and mother, and I believe in my ability and responsibility to do this, and that’s why I’m here,” she told the outlet of deciding to sing at the Super Bowl despite ongoing political tensions. 
“And the throughline to being queer and being a representative of a marginalized community and being put on the largest stage in America to acknowledge the fraught and tender hope that this country is based on, it’s something you don’t say no to. You do it.”
“I think if we’re gonna save this country as a people, we have to be reminded on some level that deep down we love it,” she added.
WATCH THE ALL-AMERICAN HALFTIME SHOW LIVE ON DAILYWIRE+
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“America the Beautiful” was written by American author and poet Katharine Lee Bates in 1893. The interviewer pointed to a line of the song which he suggested could be a call to change the country in a certain way.
“&#8217;God mend thine every flaw…&#8217;,” he began, prompting Carlile to respond,
“&#8217;… Confirm thy soul in self-control / Thy liberty in law&#8217;! Yeah. I don’t want to put words in her mouth; she was beyond brilliant. But it almost feels like she was feeling the way about the country when she wrote it that I’m feeling today singing it. Just this fragile hope, love and belief in where it could be, and acknowledging where it’s been, and acknowledging that we’re not there yet.”
The singer also said Bates was “totally gay.” Though this has been the speculation of some scholars due to her close female friendships, there is no definitive proof that Bates was part of any same-sex romantic relationships.
“I feel motivated by the fact that she was very likely gay, and a woman relying on her intellect in a time when that was difficult for women to do so, and living with a partner who was doing the same thing,” Carlile told Variety. “And still choosing … to still love America and to still believe that it could get to a place of goodness. I won’t say greatness, because that feels a little, you know, patriarchal. But goodness. And I believe the same thing.”

Brandi Carlile

‘America the Beautiful’ Singer At Super Bowl Thrilled To Represent ‘Queer Community’

'America the Beautiful' Singer At Super Bowl Thrilled To Represent 'Queer Community’

LGBT

queer

Brad Arnold, the founder and lead singer of the popular band 3 Doors Down, has died at the age of 47.
The band released a <a href="https://x.com/3doorsdown/status/2020209301915390037/photo/1">statement</a> to X on Saturday. &#8220;With his beloved wife Jennifer and his family by his side, he passed away peacefully, surrounded by loved ones, in his sleep after his courageous battle with cancer.”
“As a founding member, vocalist, and original drummer of 3 Doors Down, Brad helped redefine mainstream rock music, blending post-grunge accessibility with emotionally direct songwriting and lyrical themes that resonated with everyday listeners,” the statement continued.
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— 3 Doors Down (@3doorsdown) <a href="https://twitter.com/3doorsdown/status/2020209301915390037?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 7, 2026</a></blockquote>
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“Brad’s songwriting became a cultural touchstone for a generation, producing some of the most enduring hits of the 2000s, including the band’s breakout hit, ‘Kryptonite,’ which he wrote in his math class when he was just 15 years old. His music reverberated far beyond the stage, creating moments of connection, joy, faith, and shared experiences that will live on long after the stages he performed on.”
“Above all, he was a devoted husband to Jennifer, and his kindness, humor, and generosity touched everyone fortunate enough to know him. Those closest to him will remember not only his talent, but his warmth, humility, faith, and deep love for his family and friends,” the statement concluded, adding the family is “deeply grateful” for the love and support.
“He will be deeply missed and forever remembered.”
Arnold <a href="https://www.fox29.com/news/brad-arnold-3-doors-down-cancer-tour">announced in May 2025</a> that he had been diagnosed with Stage 4 clear cell renal cell carcinoma and that 3 Doors Down would be canceling their summer tour. Despite the serious diagnosis, the singer said he had “no fear.”
While not overtly political, 3 Doors Down played at the &#8220;Make America Great Again Welcome Celebration&#8221; ahead of President Trump’s inauguration in 2017. When asked about playing the event when other musicians steered clear, Arnold <a href="https://loudwire.com/3-doors-down-brad-arnold-donald-trump-inauguration-concert-its-all-about-america-were-proud-to-be-here/">told</a> reporters, &#8220;Man, it&#8217;s all about America. We&#8217;re proud to be here.&#8221;
&#8220;We love America, man. This is gonna be a great experience. It&#8217;s a great honor to be here and we&#8217;re proud to be here,” he added.
The singer struggled with alcoholism in the past, but later committed to sobriety and became an outspoken Christian, even sharing that message from the stage. In August 2024, he made headlines for preaching the Gospel during a concert in Hershey, Pennsylvania.
Before performing &#8220;Away from the Sun,&#8221; Arnold addressed the audience, <a href="https://www.christianpost.com/news/3-doors-down-lead-singer-stops-concert-to-share-the-gospel.html">saying</a>: “I feel like I can identify with this song more than most of our songs. &#8230; This world surrounds [us with] a message we’ll never be good enough, we’ll never be strong enough, we’ll never be beautiful enough, we’ll never be rich enough.”
“My friends, I just want to take a second to tell you, that’s an absolute lie. You are loved. You are enough, and you will win. Not only can you win, but you will win. You’ll always be enough for one reason. And that’s because Jesus Christ loves you.”

Brad Arnold

Brad Arnold, 3 Doors Down Singer Who Played Trump’s Inauguration, Dies At 47

Celebrities

Death

rock music

Turning Point USA vowed to put on a show to rival the Super Bowl halftime show headlined by <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/unlike-bad-bunny-the-super-bowl-is-going-all-in-to-celebrate-america">Bad Bunny</a>, and they delivered in red, white, and blue.
The lineup for &#8220;The All-American Halftime Show&#8221; was announced Monday. Kid Rock, Brantley Gilbert, Lee Brice, and Gabby Barrett will take the stage in a show TPUSA says will celebrate faith, family, and freedom.
&#8220;We&#8217;re approaching this show like David and Goliath,&#8221; Kid Rock said in a statement, per <a href="https://www.foxnews.com/politics/turning-point-usa-launches-rival-halftime-show-star-studded-lineup-nfl-faces-super-bowl-backlash">Fox News</a>. &#8220;Competing with the pro football machine and a global pop superstar is almost impossible, or is it? He said he’s having a dance party, wearing a dress, and singing in Spanish? Cool. We plan to play great songs for folks who love America.&#8221;
Kid Rock said on The Charlie Kirk Show on Monday that half of the United States is &#8220;underserved&#8221; entertainment-wise.
This show will air during Super Bowl LX&#8217;s official halftime show featuring Latin music star Bad Bunny, who won &#8220;Album of the Year&#8221; at the Grammys on Sunday. The singer&#8217;s selection has sparked significant backlash from many conservatives, including President Donald Trump. Bad Bunny has been critical of the Trump administration&#8217;s illegal immigrant crackdown and refused to tour in the United States last year because he said he didn&#8217;t want ICE raiding his concerts.
At the Grammys this past Sunday, Bad Bunny again criticized ICE.
&#8220;Before I say thanks to God, I&#8217;m going to say, &#8216;ICE out,'&#8221; Bad Bunny said.
WATCH THE ALL-AMERICAN HALFTIME SHOW LIVE ON DAILYWIRE+
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Last fall, Trump took a jab at Bad Bunny, saying he didn&#8217;t know who the singer was after the NFL announced he would be performing at the Super Bowl LX halftime show.
&#8220;I don’t know who he is,&#8221; Trump told Newsmax. &#8220;I don’t know why they’re doing it. It’s crazy. And then they blame it on some promoter they hired to pick up entertainment. I think it’s absolutely ridiculous.&#8221;
Trump definitely knows who Kid Rock is. The &#8220;Bawitdaba&#8221; singer is a close pal and golfing buddy of the president. Kid Rock also performed at the last Republican National Convention.
&#8220;The All-American Halftime Show&#8221; will allow viewers to be up close and personal with the performance, Turning Point USA spokesman Andrew Kolvet told Fox News Digital.
&#8220;&#8216;The All-American Halftime Show&#8217; is an opportunity for all Americans to enjoy a halftime show with no agenda other than to celebrate faith, family, and freedom,&#8221; Kolvet said. &#8220;We can’t wait to watch the incredible show they’re about to put on. We know millions around the country will be watching too.&#8221;
Barrett, who placed third on Season 16 of American Idol, recently sang at the White House Christmas tree lighting ceremony.
The star-studded show is expected to start around 8 p.m. ET on February 8. The Daily Wire will air the show on its platform. TPUSA will also stream the concert on its YouTube channel and X account.
Super Bowl LX is being held in Santa Clara, California, at Levi&#8217;s Stadium, home of the San Francisco 49ers.
The battle between the Seattle Seahawks and New England Patriots kicks off Sunday at 6:30 p.m. ET.

Turning Point USA Unveils Star-Studded ‘All-American Halftime Show’ To Rival Super Bowl’s Bad Bunny

Turning Point USA Announces Star-Studded All-American Halftime Show Sunday

News

Over the weekend, we learned about a very powerful, very rich cadre of people who think they have inordinate control over the direction of our nation&#8217;s politics.
I&#8217;m speaking, of course, about the Grammys.
This year’s Grammys were filled with our usual celebrity geniuses spouting their usual performative politics to the cheers of their fellow celebrities.
The reason I&#8217;m pointing this out is because if you ever wonder what the room is like where special people hash out what our culture ought to look like, it looks like the Grammys.
What makes the Grammys and so many of our award shows fascinating is that they are an inside look for the rest of the world of what these people actually sound like at dinner parties.
I know a lot of the people in Hollywood. I&#8217;ve spoken with many of them. Far too often, we see people patting themselves on the back for their performative version of the most extreme radical politics in our society.
That’s the reason we are so annoyed when it shows up on our television. When people tune into the Grammys or the Oscars or any other awards show, what they expect is a celebration of the culture that we all share, the music or films that we all enjoy.
<div id="attachment_974957" style="width: 1034px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><a href="https://www.dailywire.com/episode/ep-2359-the-grammys-vs-ice?elementPosition=1&amp;row=0&amp;rowHeadline=Recent+Episodes&amp;rowType=Horizontal+Show+Episodes+Carousel"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-974957" class="size-large wp-image-974957" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/09/511983dad25841c8b1ec058d75769bbe-1024x171.webp" alt="DailyWire+" width="1024" height="171" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/09/511983dad25841c8b1ec058d75769bbe-1024x171.webp 1024w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/09/511983dad25841c8b1ec058d75769bbe-300x50.webp 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/09/511983dad25841c8b1ec058d75769bbe-768x128.webp 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/09/511983dad25841c8b1ec058d75769bbe-1536x256.webp 1536w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/09/511983dad25841c8b1ec058d75769bbe-2048x341.webp 2048w" sizes=" (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></a>DailyWire+</div>
Instead, what we usually get is a cocktail party punctuated by some people who share lifestyles holding up the trophy. These are the most protected, wealthy people in our society, and the people who share that lifestyle are people who tend to share their politics.
And they act as if we, the little people, are privileged because they are sharing their politics with us.
Sunday night at the Grammys, virtually every performer decided they were going to lead by ripping into Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and the Trump administration. 
Obviously, there are other things going on in the world, and sometimes that’s the focus. Just a year or two ago, virtually everyone at the Grammys said something about the supposed evils of the Israeli Defense Forces in the Gaza Strip.
Now, of course, the Iranian government has been mowing down protesters, perhaps by the tens of thousands.
Not one single word about that at the Grammys.
But lots of words for Immigration and Customs Enforcement doing its job in Minneapolis.
Bad Bunny, whose real name is apparently Benito Antonio Martinez Ocasio, and who was nominated for six Grammys, won an award for his album.
He’s the same guy who is supposed to perform at the Super Bowl, apparently wearing a dress, which is exactly what we all want.
(Because if you&#8217;re showing your nine-year-old son the Super Bowl, where men are men and athletic performance and grit and determination and heart are the keys to victory, what you really want is a dude gallivanting around in ladies&#8217; garments during halftime.)
<div id="attachment_1037523" style="width: 888px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-1037523" class="size-large wp-image-1037523" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/02/GettyImages-2258958804-878x576.jpg" alt="LOS ANGELES - FEBRUARY 1: Bad Bunny receives the award for Album of the Year at The 68th Annual Grammy Awards, broadcasting live Sunday, February 1, 2026 on the CBS Television Network, and streaming live and on demand on Paramount+*. (Photo by Stewart Cook/CBS via Getty Images)" width="878" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/02/GettyImages-2258958804-878x576.jpg 878w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/02/GettyImages-2258958804-300x197.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/02/GettyImages-2258958804-768x504.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/02/GettyImages-2258958804.jpg 1024w" sizes=" (max-width: 878px) 100vw, 878px" />Stewart Cook/CBS via Getty Images</div>
Bad Bunny proceeded to rip into ICE, which is precisely what we need to hear from this human.
“Before I say thanks to God, I&#8217;m going to say ‘ICE out,” he declared to thunderous applause. “We&#8217;re not savages. We’re not animals. We&#8217;re not aliens. We are humans, and we are Americans. And also, I want to say to people I know it&#8217;s tough not to hate on these days. &#8230; The hate gets more powerful with more hate. The only thing that is more powerful than hate is love.”
Deep words. Love is more powerful than hate. That is deep verbiage. I can see why he is such an acclaimed songwriter and performer.
I love how celebrities really believe that they are Michael Scott in “The Office.” They think they can walk into the middle of a room and shout, “I declare bankruptcy,” and it is legally effective.
If you go into a room with all of your fellow celebrities protected by armed security outside, where every single human who comes into that arena has to have their background checked, you can sit there and tell the rest of America that no protection is available — for them.
Billie Eilish —whom I would guess not only has armed security but a palatial estate surrounded by a fence because she has stalker problems— said, “nobody is illegal on stolen land.”
By stolen land, I assume she means all of planet Earth, since populations have been moving since the beginning of recorded human history.
Billie Eilish does look significantly less unhappy since she started dating a dude. At least, she’s got that going for her.
Olivia Dean chimed in, “I guess I want to say I&#8217;m up here as a granddaughter of an immigrant, I wouldn&#8217;t be here.”
I should point out that a huge percentage of Americans have ancestors who came here at some point.
Oh, the bravery of these people. They all think alike. They all act as if they have similar lifestyles, and they are speaking to you, the little people, the people who don&#8217;t have armed security at your palatial estates or have people pay you millions upon millions of dollars to sing songs written by a large coterie of other people.
You need to hear their voices. You need to hear their words. These are the tastemakers. These are the people shaping the culture for our children.
Gloria Estefan compared ICE to the Holocaust.
You can&#8217;t just compare something to the Holocaust. Picking up individual illegal immigrants and sending them back to their home countries is not the same as an entire war infrastructure set up to systematically murder millions of people of a particular race.
America is not Nazi Germany. You know what you didn&#8217;t see in the middle of World War II? A bunch of artists getting up on red carpets, talking about how terrible the Nazis were — in Berlin.
<div id="attachment_1037525" style="width: 874px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-1037525" class="size-large wp-image-1037525" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/02/GettyImages-2258940660-864x576.jpg" alt="LOS ANGELES - FEBRUARY 1: Trevor Noah at The 68th Annual Grammy Awards, broadcasting live Sunday, February 1, 2026 on the CBS Television Network, and streaming live and on demand on Paramount+*. (Photo by Francis Specker/CBS via Getty Images)" width="864" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/02/GettyImages-2258940660-864x576.jpg 864w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/02/GettyImages-2258940660-300x200.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/02/GettyImages-2258940660-768x512.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/02/GettyImages-2258940660.jpg 1024w" sizes=" (max-width: 864px) 100vw, 864px" />Francis Specker/CBS via Getty Images</div>
And of course, we got Trevor Noah hosting the Grammys, where he was his usual smarmy, obnoxious self, ripping Nicki Minaj for the great sin of having gone to the White House to promote the Trump accounts, which are savings accounts being set up for American children. “She is still at the White House with Donald Trump discussing very important issues,” he mocked to cheers from the audience.
I love that all the people cheering when he mocks Nicki Minaj for “discussing serious issues” act as though they are discussing serious issues.
They sing songs that are overproduced in autotune, and then they go on stage and pretend they know something about policy.
Noah dropped what he thought was a joke about Epstein Island and Trump and suggested that the president had been to Epstein Island. Trump fired back, threatening to sue Trevor Noah.
Why is any of this really important? Because when you have all the cultural tastemakers who are all pushing the same politics, that is likely to seep out into the broader culture, and sometimes these politics can go viral and turn into a brain worm that eats the American body politic.
You saw this, for example, with the trans issue, pushed by every cultural arbiter in American society. For a decade, this was promoted as the way to decide whether a person was virtuous or not, whether they were willing to say that a boy could be a girl and a girl could be a boy. 
It does make a difference when the entire cultural apparatus mobilizes behind an issue.
But there is something else here that is also worthy of note. Celebrities have their own social circle that tends to mirror itself. It is, in fact, a hallway of mirrors. You&#8217;re not welcome in a lot of these social circles if you have different politics. You cannot succeed if you don’t mirror their politics.
The story of Hollywood in its most depraved form, writ small, would be the Diddy “White Parties.” That was Hollywood in its most depraved form, writ small. That was a microcosm of what Hollywood is. That was the most extreme version of what&#8217;s happening in that cultural milieu.
But we are supposed to be privileged to listen to what these kinds of people have to say.

The 68th Annual Grammy Awards

The Grammys Hallway Of Mirrors: How Celebrity Performative Politics Infects Culture

Grammy Awards

Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE)

Woke Culture

The 2026 Grammy Awards were supposed to celebrate music. Instead, they became another stage for Hollywood’s favorite performance: moral superiority without consequences.
This year, celebrities like Billie Eilish, Teddy Swims, and Justin Bieber donned <a href="https://variety.com/2026/music/news/grammys-ice-out-pins-billie-eilish-kehlani-bon-iver-1236648441/">“ICE Out”</a> pins and used their acceptance speeches to condemn Immigration and Customs Enforcement and lecture Americans about justice, compassion, and humanity. From their gilded seats inside Crypto.com Arena, they urged unity and resistance all while remaining safely insulated from the real world consequences of the policies they champion.
That is the part no one on that stage ever acknowledges.
The celebrities grandstanding about immigration do not live in border communities. They do not compete for jobs with illegal labor. They do not deal with overwhelmed schools, strained hospitals, or rising crime. They do not have to explain to grieving families why their loved ones died because basic immigration enforcement was treated as immoral.
Where was the outrage from Hollywood when Laken Riley was murdered by an illegal immigrant? Where were the pins, speeches, and standing ovations then? Silence. Because acknowledging victims like her would complicate the narrative, Hollywood prefers slogans over substance.
When Billie Eilish declared that no one is illegal on stolen land, critics pointed out the obvious contradiction. She lives in a multimillion dollar estate guarded by private security. If land ownership is illegitimate, why is she not handing over the keys. Virtue is easy when it costs nothing.
Hollywood’s moral theater is not about helping people. It is about signaling status. Proving you belong to the correct side of elite opinion while never having to live with the fallout.
That is why the reaction to Nicki Minaj was so revealing.
Minaj did not wear a pin. She did not chant slogans. She did not follow the script. Instead, she attended the world premiere of Melania at the Kennedy Center, has worked alongside President Trump on Trump Accounts, and openly calls herself his number one fan. She chose independence over approval, and Hollywood is punishing her for it.
During the Grammys, <a href="https://apnews.com/article/article/trevor-noah-grammys-nicki-minaj-kendrick-lamar-79ee508f2e15ec56b2b4826b787b6913">host Trevor Noah turned Minaj into a punchline</a>, joking that she was at the White House with Donald Trump. The audience laughed not because it was clever but because it signaled who was acceptable to mock.
<div id="attachment_1037301" style="width: 874px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-1037301" class="size-large wp-image-1037301" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/02/GettyImages-2258958861-864x576.jpg" alt="LOS ANGELES - FEBRUARY 1: Trevor Noah at The 68th Annual Grammy Awards, broadcasting live Sunday, February 1, 2026 on the CBS Television Network, and streaming live and on demand on Paramount+*. (Photo by Francis Specker/CBS via Getty Images)" width="864" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/02/GettyImages-2258958861-864x576.jpg 864w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/02/GettyImages-2258958861-300x200.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/02/GettyImages-2258958861-768x512.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/02/GettyImages-2258958861.jpg 1024w" sizes=" (max-width: 864px) 100vw, 864px" />Francis Specker/CBS via Getty Images</div>
The hostility did not stop there. At a MusiCares gala, Billy Porter publicly dropped an<a href="https://www.complex.com/pop-culture/a/markelibert/billy-porter-slams-nicki-minaj-trump-support"> F bomb</a> when asked about Minaj’s political views, declaring shame on her and others like her. In Hollywood, tolerance ends where independent thought begins.
The message was clear. You are free to speak as long as you agree.
Nicki Minaj did not see the light because Hollywood showed her anything new. She saw the truth Americans have known for years. The entertainment industry demands conformity not compassion. Obedience not courage.
Real Americans are tired of being lectured by people who will never pay the price for the policies they promote. They are tired of selective outrage, empty slogans, and celebrities who cry injustice while living lives untouched by its consequences.
The Grammys did not expose ICE. They exposed Hollywood.
And the more celebrities shout, the clearer it becomes. Americans are not rejecting compassion. They are rejecting hypocrisy.
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Janiyah Thomas is a GOP strategist and former Black Media Director for President Trump’s 2024 campaign. She also contributed to the Trump Vance Inauguration media strategy and previously served as Media Relations Director for the Republican National Convention.
The views expressed in this piece are those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of The Daily Wire.

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