Musician Kid Rock announced Tuesday that he will not run for the Senate next year, quashing speculation that he would challenge Democratic Sen. Debbie Stabenow (Mich.) in 2018.
Kid Rock said on Howard Stern's Sirius XM radio show that he plans on releasing a new album and mocked those who took the idea of a Senate run seriously, the Detroit Free Press reported.
"F**k no, I'm not running for Senate. Are you kidding me?" Kid Rock said. "Who couldn't figure that out? I'm releasing a new album. I'm going on tour too. Are you f**king s**tting me?"
Stern said that Kid Rock's new album, "Sweet Southern Sugar," will be released Nov. 3.
Kid Rock, whose real name is Robert Ritchie, said the idea of running for the Senate, which he had floated for months, has had its benefits.
"It's the worst advice I ever gave myself, but it's been the most creative thing I've ever done and I've gotten to see everyone's true colors," the musician said.
Kid Rock had teased a potential run against incumbent Stabenow, even selling Kid Rock for Senate merchandise online with the website kidrockforsenate.com. In recent months, he had delved into politics during speeches at concerts.
Some observers thought Kid Rock, a Republican, had a legitimate chance of defeating Stabenow, in part because President Donald Trump won Michigan in 2016. At least one poll from the summer showed Kid Rock leading Stabenow in a hypothetical 2018 Senate race in Michigan.
At one point Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell's (R., Ky.) super PAC, the Senate Leadership Fund, expressed interest in seeing the musician run for office.
But the potential Senate bid was a stunt.
Kid Rock told Stern that as public hype grew about him running for office, even people close to him who were "in on the joke" began to take it seriously.
"No, we're not doing it," Kid rock said he would tell them, "but let's roll with it for a while."