Shock as star rapper out of 'MAGA-adjacent' country tour

After days of growing backlash across social media, star rapper Ludacris bowed out Friday from a country music festival critics have described as "MAGA-adjacent," following confusion and outrage over his inclusion on a tour led by Kid Rock and Jason Aldean.

The festival, first launched in 2024 and described by The New York Times as “a vision of the MAGA movement in pure party mode,” with shows that “felt like Trump rallies,” announced its lineup Monday. It features names like Creed, Shinedown, Nelly, Brantley Gilbert and Gavin Adcock.