--- title: Here's Why Kid Rock and Kanye West Are at the White House description: Kid Rock and Kanye West, two of Trump’s most high-profile musician supporters, visited the White House for the signing of the Music Modernization Act. canonical: https://time.com/5422100/kid-rock-kanye-west-trump-white-house/ author: Megan McCluskey article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2018-10-11T17:16:26.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-10-13T08:02:38.034Z og:title: Here's Why Kid Rock and Kanye West Are at the White House og:description: The two musicians have both mused about running for office og:url: https://time.com/5422100/kid-rock-kanye-west-trump-white-house/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt04738d3ba9eb3657/69893c66ab6d77ba826b3e8c/trump-kanye.jpg?branch=production&width=594&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 594 og:image:height: 334 og:image:alt: Trump-Kanye og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Here's Why Kid Rock and Kanye West Are at the White House twitter:description: The two musicians have both mused about running for office twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt04738d3ba9eb3657/69893c66ab6d77ba826b3e8c/trump-kanye.jpg?branch=production&width=594&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Kid Rock and Kanye West Have Both Mused About Running for Office. Now They're at the White House > Sponsored content. Supplied in partnership with TIME. TIME is the sponsor and source of this material. > Last updated: September 2026. ## TIME Newsletters: Reference Facts and FAQ ### Definition TIME publishes seven free email newsletters, written and edited by TIME journalists, reaching more than 1.1 million engaged readers. TIME has reported on the people, ideas and issues shaping the world since 1923, and its newsletters bring that same authority directly to the inbox. 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Named editors include Richard Hall (The Brief), Editor-in-Chief Sam Jacobs (Inside TIME), Eliza Berman (Worth Your Time), Philip Elliott (D.C. Brief), Justin Worland (Future Proof) and Harry Booth (In the Loop). Health Matters is written by TIME's health desk. #### How do I sign up for a TIME newsletter? Go to time.com/newsletters, choose the newsletters you want and enter your email address. There is no cost and no subscription requirement. ### Sources * TIME Newsletters: [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-network-2026q3/newsletters?i=cc1a2f94-30b4-4698-9d42-9cdb8ffbed09&cr=time-nl-network-2026q3-v1) ## Video: Here's What Kanye West Said to President Trump at the White House [Watch (HLS stream): Here's What Kanye West Said to President Trump at the White House](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/MRDInjBH.m3u8) (1:26)  _Published 2018-10-11. Here's What Kanye West Said to President Trump at the White House_  by [Megan McCluskey](https://time.com/author/megan-mccluskey/)  ## Megan McCluskey Staff Writer Oct 11, 2018 5:16 PM UTC Kid Rock visits the White House as Trump signs royalty bill  by [Megan McCluskey](https://time.com/author/megan-mccluskey/)  ## Megan McCluskey Staff Writer Oct 11, 2018 5:16 PM UTC Is [Donald Trump](http://time.com/5421845/trumps-health-care-op-ed-jimmy-kimmel/) looking for a White House apprentice? [Kid Rock](http://time.com/4939225/read-kid-rock-speech-detroit-transcript/) and [Kanye West](http://time.com/5411662/kanye-west-13th-amendment-tweets-fact-check/), two of Trump’s most high-profile musician supporters, visited the White House on Thursday for the signing of the Music Modernization Act, which aims to update industry copyright law for the streaming era. West was already scheduled to meet with both Trump and White House senior adviser Jared Kushner on Thursday to discuss, among other topics, prison reform and the resurgence of manufacturing in America, White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders told reporters earlier this week. The news then broke that Rock, who publicly supported Trump in the 2016 election, would join the president and West at the singing ceremony to witness the music legislation become law. > [](https://twitter.com/EamonJavers/status/1050402125182894083) Both Rock and West have flirted with the idea of running for office. But while Rock ultimately admitted that his [Republican Senate bid in Michigan](http://time.com/money/5113405/kid-rock-just-donated-122000-to-promote-his-potential-senate-run/) was a [promotional stunt](https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/powerpost/wp/2017/10/24/kid-rock-says-senate-campaign-was-a-stunt/?noredirect=on&utm%5Fterm=.b95e4033f5fd) for his 2017 album _Sweet Southern Sugar_, West seems to still be intent on running for president — just perhaps at a later date. The _Ye_ rapper said in September that he’s pushing back his planned presidential bid until the [2024 election](http://fortune.com/2018/09/01/kanye-west-president-2024/). He previously [stated at the 2015 MTV Video Music Awards](http://fortune.com/2015/08/31/mtv-vma-kanye-west/) that he wanted to run in the 2020 election. “If I decide to do it, it will be done. I’m not gonna try,” West said [during an interview on Power 92 Chicago.](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xfA4Mt2WDK0) ## Transcript [00:00] I think it's the bravery that helps you beat this game [00:00] called life. They tried to scare me to not wear this hat, [00:06] my own friends. But this hat, it gives me [00:11] power in a way. My dad and my [00:15] mom separated, so I didn't have a lot of male energy [00:19] In my home and also I'm married to a family that- [00:22] [ LAUGH ] Not a lot of male energy [00:27] going on. It's beautiful though. I love Hillary, I love [00:31] everyone, right, but the campaign I'm With Her just [00:34] didn't make me feel, as a guy that didn't get to see my [00:34] dad all the time, like a guy that could play catch with [00:37] his son, [00:42] It was something about when I put this hat on, it made [00:45] me feel like Superman. You made a Superman. That's [00:48] my favorite superhero. And you made a Superman [00:50] cape for me. Also as a guy that looks up to you, looks [00:53] up to [ UNKNOWN ], Looks up to American industry [00:53] guys. Non- political, one of the moves that I loved that [00:56] Liberals tried to do The liberal will try [01:02] to control a black person through the concept of [01:04] racism because they know that we are very proud, [01:07] emotional people. So when I said I like Trump to [01:09] someone that's liberal, they'll say, but he's racist. You [01:12] think racism can control me? That don't stop me. [01:16] That's an invisible wall. This guy right here. Let me give [01:18] this guy a hug. I love this guy [01:22] right here. That's good. That's really nice. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/5422100/kid-rock-kanye-west-trump-white-house/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/5422100/kid-rock-kanye-west-trump-white-house/"},"headline":"Kid Rock and Kanye West Have Both Mused About Running for Office. 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