Kid Rock to open Little Caesars Arena with 4 shows in September
Bill Shea/Crain's Detroit Business
From left: Red Wings captain Henrick Zetterberg, former Detroit Pistons star Rick Mahorn, an unidentified construction worker, Ilitch Holdings Inc. CEO Chris Ilitch, Olympia Entertainment President and CEO Tom Wilson and musician Kid Rock at the Jan. 19 announcement that the metro Detroit native will be the opening act at the New Little Caesars Arena in September.
Detroit's new entertainment and sports arena will open in September with four shows by hometown rocker Kid Rock, and he hinted that the concerts could be the start of more regular appearances at the venue.
The Macomb County-born rock/hip-hop/country music artist — his birth name is Robert Ritchie — was unveiled during a news conference Thursday morning as the inaugural act at the $635 million Little Caesars Arena when it opens in September. The building, whose concrete and steel guts are mostly finished as the roof and interior are worked out, will be a concert venue and home of the Detroit Red Wings and Pistons.
Ritchie is scheduled to inaugurate the arena with concerts on Sept. 12, 13, 15 and 16. Tickets are priced at $20, $35, $55 and $75, and go on sale at 10 a.m. Jan. 27.
Opening acts haven't been determined.
When asked, Ritchie said there has been some conversation about becoming an artist-in-residence at the new arena, not unlike Billy Joel's ongoing Madison Square Garden residency that now has run to 37 shows since 2014. Such an arrangement for Little Caesars Arena remains an idea, Ritchie said.
"We've definitely spoke about it," he said. "We really haven't got into the meat and potatoes yet, but it's definitely interesting."
Having a home in Detroit also makes the idea of regular shows at the new arena interesting.
"After touring for 30 years, proximity becomes a big selling point to play," Ritchie said, noting that he enjoys playing shows at DTE Energy Music Theatre in Clarkston because it's so close to his Macomb County home.
Ritchie also revealed that Chris Ilitch, his longtime friend and the day-to-day executive in charge of the arena project, asked him to make design suggestions for the arena before construction began.
"He picked my brain a little bit about being in so many different stadiums and arenas around the world," Ritchie said, noting that he provided ideas about rigging, sound, load-in and dressing rooms. He said he's curious to see if any of his ideas will become part of the building, which is the centerpiece of the Ilitch family's $2.2 billion, 50-block mixed-used development called The District Detroit.
It was Ilitch, the president and CEO of Ilitch Holdings Inc., who introduced Kid Rock as the opening act Thursday. The musician entered the news conference, which took place next to where the ice rink will be built inside the arena, to a medley of his hit songs. A bevy of construction workers, clad in yellow safety vests and white helmets, watched the event from around the seating bowl. Many came to snap pictures after the news conference ended.
Ilitch lauded the arena and Ritchie for being locally made, so to speak, to the 20-some media members gathered for the announcement.
"With this world-class, Michigan-made, Detroit-built facility, it is only fitting that we would welcome a Michigan-made, Detroit-built entertainment icon to perform the very first shows here at Little Caesars Arena," llitch said, reading from prepared remarks. "From the beginning, we've planned The District Detroit and Little Caesars Arena to have the greatest possible positive impact on our community. Kicking off the grand opening of Little Caesars Arena with four shows from a worldwide star and Detroit icon like Kid Rock is a terrific way to launch The District Detroit."
Ilitch-owned Olympia Entertainment announced the news conference Wednesday with a release that hinted at "another Detroit franchise" at the new arena, with an image of a question mark between the Red Wings and Pistons logos. That led to a round of speculation online what the announcement would be. Some on social media were critical of the elaborate announcement being Kid Rock.
Also appearing, but not speaking, on Thursday were former Pistons player and current team radio broadcaster Rick Mahorn and current Red Wings captain Henrik Zetterberg.
The Pistons, who have separate ownership from the Red Wings, announced in November they'll relocate for the 2017-18 season to Little Caesars Arena after 29 years at The Palace of Auburn Hills. The fate of that building, built in 1988 and seating about the same as 20,000-seat Little Caesars Arena, remains undetermined. It's unlikely it would be allowed to compete with the new arena as an entertainment building. The Red Wings' current home since 1979, Joe Louis Arena, will be razed.
Pistons owner Tom Gores has said his entertainment company, Palace Sports & Entertainment, will become a joint venture with Olympia Entertainment.
Chris Ilitch runs the day-to-day operations of his parents Mike and Marian Ilitch's business empire that includes the arena named for their massive Detroit-based pizza business. With Ilitch on Thursday was Tom Wilson, president of Olympia Entertainment that runs the concert and event business for the Ilitches, and manages the business side of the Ilitch-owned Detroit Red Wings that will be the arena's primary co-tenant along with the Detroit Pistons.
UPDATE: Backlash about the choice of Kid Rock to open the arena emerged Thursday afternoon. Aaron Foley, a media observer and editor of Ferndale-based BLAC Detroit Magazine, quotes Sam Riddle, political director of the Michigan National Action Network, as calling the choice an "insult" and calls for him to be dropped.
Ritchie has draw criticism for his embrace of the Confederate flag.
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