Kid Rock has said he used the AI music tool Suno for some of the choir and orchestra parts on Halfway 2 Jesus, his gospel and Christian album due on 17 October 2026. He told Billboard the rest was recorded the traditional way, with Nashville session players and members of his Twisted Brown Trucker band at his Dixie Ridge Studio.
“I agree it can be a huge problem down the line. I think it's to be determined.”
Kid Rock, to Billboard, to Billboard · ibtimes.co.uk ↗
He likens the software to samples or a nail gun: a tool that helps him get the sounds he hears in his head to listeners, and one he insists should not write the songs. He concedes the technology may turn into trouble for the music business later, while saying the answer is still to be determined. The interview excerpts do not say which tracks carry the AI parts or how much of the record they make up.
The album's guest list had already drawn criticism before the AI disclosure: Eminem, Lil Wayne, Gary LeVox and Jimmie Allen appear. Lil Wayne took over "7 Sins" from Eminem, who now features on "Heal My Faith". Kid Rock's cover of Cody Johnson's "Til You Can't", with a new verse about Jesus, topped Billboard's Hot Christian Songs with 3.7 million streams and 51,000 units. The outlets disagree on whether Johnson's original came out in 2021 (IBTimes) or 2022 (Whiskey Riff).
A separate photo of Kid Rock used by Whiskey Riff for the story
Image: Whiskey Riff
Whiskey Riff's commentary is sceptical. It argues that Suno is trained on the work of human artists and that AI acts take streams and money from real ones, pointing to a Kapwing study that puts Breaking Rust and Cain Walker at nearly $750,000 from Spotify and YouTube. IBTimes cautions that those figures do not show money was taken from any specific human musician.
Both outlets also recall Luke Bryan's account of songwriters pitching him demos sung with an AI copy of his voice, a practice both outlets cite as part of the wider unease around AI in country music. Most of the record, by his account, is played by people. The album arrives on Saturday, so listeners will soon be able to judge for themselves how audible the AI parts are. IBTimes also notes the backlash that built around Allen and Eminem's appearances even before Suno came up, which means the record now faces questions on two fronts: who is on it, and what made some of its sound.
Sources · 2