Robert James Ritchie (born January 17, 1971 in Romeo, Michigan), known by his stage name Kid Rock, is an American musician and actor known for his over-the-top white-trash persona and rap-rocker musical style. He has sold over 25 million records to date.

For a decade before his breakthrough into stardom, he lived a secluded small-town life; releasing obscure albums for his local fan base. His debut album, Grits Sandwiches for Breakfast, was released on Jive Records in 1990 and earned him attention. However, Jive dropped him from the label. Next, he signed with Continuum Records and released The Polyfuze Method in 1993 and Fire It Up in 1994. He sold bootleg dubs of his own records to pay his rent and worked as a janitor at Detroit's famed White Room Studios to save enough money to record his 1996 release Early Morning Stoned Pimp. After this release garnered him local attention, Kid Rock went on to form a backing band, which he called Twisted Brown Trucker.

In 1997 to 1998, the rap-metal music scene was booming with artists such as Korn, Rage Against the Machine and Limp Bizkit. Kid Rock got his big break when Atlantic Records decided to take a chance and sign him to their label. In 1998 he released his debut mainstream album Devil Without A Cause. It sold 11 million albums behind the hits, "Bawitdaba" , "Cowboy", and "Only God Knows Why".

In 2000 he released The History of Rock which was a compilation of remixed and mastered versions of songs from old albums as well as the hit "American Bad Ass". In 2001 he released Cocky. After a slow start, his country crossover hit "Picture" with Sheryl Crow resurrected the album and it went gold as a single and pushed the album's sales to more than 4 million. His 2003 self-titled release failed to chart a major hit. It was followed by Live Trucker in 2006, which was a live greatest hits album.

Currently Kid Rock is enjoying success in the U.S. and across Europe with his latest release, Rock N Roll Jesus, backed in particular by the album's third single, "All Summer Long". As of the week ending September 13, 2008, that single sat at number 23 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100, and it has also gone number one in Austria, Germany, the Netherlands, Sweden, Switzerland, the United Kingdom, and Australia. The album has been certified double platinum in the U.S. and gold in Canada and Germany.

Grits Sandwiches for Breakfast

Ritchie's career began at age 11 when his high school friend Randy Handlovsky found a group for him to join; he danced at a mall for the fun of it as a member of the b-boy group The Furious Funkers. After the success of Run-D.M.C. and The Beastie Boys, he bought a cheap belt-driven turntable and honed his craft. In high school, Ritchie DJed at parties for beer. He eventually joined Bo Wisdom of Groove Time Productions, in Mt. Clemens, Michigan for a few shows. It was then that he was given his stage name; club goers dubbed him with the moniker "Kid Rock" after they had enjoyed watching "that white kid rock."