Faith, Freedom, and Fireworks: Turning Point USA’s All-American Halftime Show Draws Millions During Super Bowl LX

The Weekly Ledger
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*Kid Rock, Brantley Gilbert, Lee Brice and Gabby Barrett at the Turning Point USA All-American Halftime Show. Photos courtesy of Turning Point USA.*

TWLN Staff Writer | The Weekly Ledger News | Entertainment Desk

While Bad Bunny delivered a headline Super Bowl LX halftime at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, California, conservative organization Turning Point USA offered an alternative broadcast that carved out its own cultural moment on Sunday evening, Feb. 8.

Turning Point USA’s first-ever All-American Halftime Show — streamed live online during the NFL’s flagship event — featured performances by Brantley Gilbert, Gabby Barrett, Lee Brice, and headliner Kid Rock. The pre-taped program, conceived as counterprogramming to the NFL halftime show, was framed around themes of faith, patriotism, and American cultural pride.

*Brantley Gilbert performs during the Turning Point USA All-American Halftime Show. Photo courtesy of Turning Point USA.*

The show kicked off with an instrumental version of “The Star-Spangled Banner” performed by Gilbert’s guitar player, setting a patriotic tone before Gilbert took the stage in a “God, Family, Country” shirt. He launched into an energetic set that included “Real American” and “Dirt Road Anthem,” the latter of which he noted he co-wrote with Colt Ford prior to its massive success for Jason Aldean. Fireworks and lasers further accentuated Gilbert’s segment, mirroring the show’s celebratory intentions.

*Gabby Barrett performs during the Turning Point USA All-American Halftime Show. Photo courtesy of Turning Point USA.*

Next up was Barrett, who appeared in a teal pantsuit and delivered her breakout No. 1 hit “I Hope” followed by “The Good Ones,” keeping the energy high with fans singing along throughout her set.

*Lee Brice performs during the Turning Point USA All-American Halftime Show. Photo courtesy of Turning Point USA.*

Lee Brice followed with a three-song sequence that included “Drinking Class” and “Hard to Love,” and also debuted a bold new track titled “Country Nowadays,” which is expected to feature on his forthcoming album.

*Kid Rock performs during the Turning Point USA All-American Halftime Show. Photo courtesy of Turning Point USA.*

*Robert Ritchie aka Kid Rock performs during the Turning Point USA All-American Halftime Show. Photo courtesy of Turning Point USA.*

The evening’s finale belonged to Kid Rock, who brought both spectacle and introspection to his performance. He opened with his signature rocker “Bawitdaba,” storming the stage as flames erupted and red, white, and blue lights filled the backdrop. After a brief interlude featuring a violinist and cellist, he returned under his real name, Robert Ritchie, to perform a country-oriented cover of “Til You Can’t,” originally made famous by Cody Johnson. Midway through the song, he explained that he felt inspired to add a new verse after a Sunday morning moment of artistic and spiritual reflection — a verse that emphasized faith, redemption, and second chances. Thunderous applause followed as the crowd responded to the reimagined lyrics.

Closing tributeyo the late Charlie Kirk, the founder and CEO of Turning Point USA who was tragically assassinated in 2025 while speaking at an event at Utah Valley University at the end of the Turning Point USA All-American Halftime Show. Photo courtesy of Turning Point USA.

The show closed with a poignant tribute to the late Charlie Kirk, the founder and CEO of Turning Point USA who was tragically assassinated in 2025 while speaking at an event at Utah Valley University. Photos of Kirk, his wife Erica, and their children were displayed on screens surrounding the stage, accompanied by the words “In Remembrance of Charlie Kirk.”

Following the broadcast, Kid Rock announced that his version of “Til You Can’t” will be released on all major streaming platforms on Monday, Feb. 9, and publicly thanked Cody Johnson and the song’s writers for their blessing to record and release the track.

Despite operating outside the official Super Bowl halftime broadcast — and overcoming last-minute licensing issues that prevented streaming on X — the All-American Halftime Show succeeded in drawing significant attention. According to platform metrics, Turning Point USA’s YouTube livestream attracted millions of viewers, with concurrent viewership peaking in the range of roughly 6.1 million during the performance. Turning Point USA’s spokesperson Andrew Kolvet stated that the show had “over 25 million views” on YouTube and Rumble combined that is including live and replay views.

While far from rivaling the NFL’s traditional halftime audience — which routinely exceeds 100 million viewers — Turning Point USA’s alternative event demonstrated the appetite for niche counterprogramming and underscored ongoing cultural debates about entertainment, identity, and national narrative on one of the country’s largest media stages.

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