Kid Rock

Kid Rock

One of the pioneers of rap-metal music, performer Kid Rock -- a native Detroiter, born Robert James Ritchie -- spent almost a decade toiling in relative obscurity, then shot instantly to global superstardom and multimillionaire status on the basis of his fourth effort, the critically revered 1998 album Devil Without a Cause. From the beginning, Rock also cultivated a very careful and deliberate public image, whereby he promulgated himself as a white-trash rebel steeped in excess; the ploy worked and (in conjunction with his Rock's musical craftsmanship) turned him into a bona fide superstar. On a cinematic level, Rock essayed a quirky series of film appearances beginning in the early 2000s. He debuted as one of the voices in the Farrelly Brothers animated/live-action mix Osmosis Jones (2001), and then took on a supporting role in the gross-out comedy Joe Dirt (2001, as -- what else? -- a white-trash toughie). Aside from a minor role in the action-saturated coming-of-age drama Biker Boyz (2003) , much of Rock's subsequent film work through the late 2000s consisted of guest appearances on such series comedies as King of the Hill and Stripperella. Meanwhile, on a musical level, the performer segued away from rap-metal and toward both Bob Seger-styled rock and gritty David Allan Coe-style outlaw country with equal aplomb; his success as a country & western performer crested with "Picture," a Top 40 duet with Sheryl Crow. All told, this musical genre transition accounted for Rock's presence in the all-star country concert film Jerry Lee Lewis: Last Man Standing (2007). ~ Nathan Southern, All Movie Guide