Kid Rock’s Detroit Restaurant Set to Close Following Singer’s Rant About Oprah Winfrey

Kid Rock’s Made in Detroit has been open since 2017

Kid Rock's restaurant
Kid Rock's Made in Detroit is set to close after the singer ranted about Oprah Winfrey earlier this week.
Kid Rock's Made in Detroit/Facebook

Oprah Winfrey is one of America’s best-loved celebrities, admired by millions for her work as a talk show host and media mogul. This week has brought with it the news that Robert James Ritchie, aka Kid Rock, is not among them. Kid Rock bizarrely and profanely ranted against Winfrey earlier in the week, and the full consequences of his comments are beginning to hit home. Among those affected? Detroit sports fans who like comfort food.

Some context: Kid Rock owns a restaurant, Kid Rock’s Made in Detroit, which is located at Little Caesars Arena, home to the Pistons and Red Wings. Well, it’s located there for a little while longer, anyway.

Earlier this week, video surfaced of Kid Rock making a slew of profane comments about Winfrey. As USA Today’s report on the incident notes, Kid Rock has long had issues with Winfrey; this seems to be the latest and most high-profile manifestation of that. 

Among the consequences of his actions: the pending closure of Kid Rock’s Made in Detroit. The Guardian reports that “[t]he billionaire Ilitch family that owns the arena in which the restaurant is housed announced on Wednesday that Kid Rock had ‘voluntarily decided not to renew’ his licensing agreement for Kid Rock’s Made in Detroit.”

Protests had been planned outside of the restaurant prior to this announcement. The Guardian also observes that this controversy might represent a final break between Kid Rock and his hometown. Hopefully these events will not inspire him to talk about running for office again.

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