Rock The South 2025: See pics as ‘Biggest Party In The South’ returns for Day 2

Kid Rock is probably the “most Rock The South” headliner you could get to headline Rock The South.

And yes, Kid Rock, né Bob Ritchie, closed out Friday at this year’s festival. His set boasted gloriously trashy rap-rock hits like “Bawitdaba” and “Cowboy” and the excellent country ballad “Picture.”

Friday’s music lineup also boasted moments you might not expect from this country/Southern rock centric music festival, held on a 140-acre farm in the Cullman, Alabama area.

For example, there was a set by rapper/singer Afroman. Known for his hit “Because I Got High,” he played a marijuana-leaf-shaped guitar onstage Friday afternoon.

Ole 60, an upstart Americana act from Kentucky, also performed a daytime set. Later, Buckcherry brought Hollywood’s Sunset Strip to the farm, courtesy of hard-rock anthems like “Lit Up” and “Crazy Bitch.”

Other Friday bands included rising Alabama-founded Southern rockers Them Dirty Roses. Meanwhile, fans in attendance sported T-shirts emblazoned with slogans like “Cowgirls Break Hearts” and “Gulf of America.”

Thursday headliner was “All My Rowdy Friends Are Coming over Tonight” country legend Hank Williams Jr.

[Southern rock gods Lynyrd Skynyrd, part of this year’s RTS-affiliated tour Rock The Country, and Williams are the only artists alive with the powers to potentially “out Rock The South” Kid Rock.]

Nickelback will close out the ‘25 festival with a 9:30 p.m. Saturday set. The Canadian post-grunge band, known for hits like “Rockstar,” top a Saturday lineup also featuring the likes of country hit-makers Shenandoah and rap group Rehab.

Marketed as “The Biggest Party in the South,” Rock The South launched in 2012, originally as a fundraiser for victims of the 2011 tornadoes that devasted parts of Alabama. The many major acts to play the fest in the past include Skynyrd, Gregg Allman, Morgan Wallen, Miranda Lambert, Maren Morris and Alan Jackson.

Last year’s Rock The South attendance was about half of 2023’s, according to the Cullman Times. 2024 attendance was between 17,000 and 20,000 each day, down from around 35,000 each day in 2023.