In late September, Kid Rock played a private concert to celebrate the release of Red Stag by Jim Beam, a fantastic new bourbon with a black cherry infusion, as well as a generous donation to support military families. I was flown out on Jim Beam's dime for the event, which included Rock's presentation of a donation of $177,044.50 to Operation Homefront, a nonprofit organization that supports America’s troops, their families and wounded warriors returning from combat.
It wasn't easy to break from the enormous pool full of drunk, scantily-clad ladies and the delicious Red Stag liquor (which tastes like a sweeter, black-cherry-flavored Jim Beam) that flowed like water and mixed dangerously well, but The Joint in the Vegas Hard Rock is a beautiful venue, and Kid Rock, who's known for his high-octane performances, was there to Rock it.
The show itself made the partnership between the three entities seem like a no-brainer; Rock's been singing about Jim Beam for as long as he's been a household name, and the man couldn't be more down-home patriotic if his face were tattooed with stars and stripes. His overseas holidays trips to entertain the troops are remarkable on their own, but Operation Homefront received a fifty cent donation from every ticket sold during the 25-city Rock N’ Rebels Tour sponsored by Red Stag by Jim Beam. Needless to say, those much-needed pennies added up nicely at a time when everybody's strapped for cash and charities are having more trouble than ever in bringing in donations.
Kid Rock presented Operation Homefront with a check prior to the private concert, which is already directly contributing to the well-being of military men & women and their families.
“Kid Rock’s generous donation will help Operation Homefront provide emergency aid to military families in need, morale programs for our troops and care for our nation’s wounded warriors,” said Jim Knotts, president and CEO of Operation Homefront. “Our nation needs a strong military, and our military needs strong families. We deeply appreciate this kind gesture of support for the mission of Operation Homefront and the families we serve.”
Kid Rock and Red Stag by Jim Beam honored individual military heroes and supporters during his summer tour. Nominated by their friends and family, honorees were presented with tickets to Kid Rock’s concert in their hometown and given signed Red Stag guitars. Check out a special message to the troops from Kid Rock & Jim Beam, for Operation Homefront - send it to someone you know in the armed forces:
The crowd at the private concert, which included servicemen and women as well as Jim Beam employees, may as well have been Kid Rock die-hards from the get-go; everyone was singing along, and it's been years since I've heard a response as strong as theirs to Rock's latest hit, "Summertime". Being from Michigan, I'll admit to spilling my drink while singing along - but nothing was quite as exciting - or surreal - as seeing a live rendition of the "Dukes of Hazzard" theme song.
“Jim Beam is a longtime advocate for Operation Homefront and America’s military personnel, but the Kid Rock concert tour elevated our support to rock star status” said Kelly Doss, senior director of Bourbon and Whiskeys, Beam Global. “We share a philosophy and long history of supporting our troops. It was a perfect partnership that culminated in some pretty amazing fundraising.”
Stay tuned for more, including a closer look at Red Stag by Jim Beam and a profile on the Red Crave, a custom-built drink named after CraveOnline by mixmaster Bobby G!
