Big & Rich singer John Rich goes on Twitter tirade over Nike's Colin Kaepernick campaign: 'Just saying what millions of us think'
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Big & Rich singer John Rich goes on Twitter tirade over Nike's Colin Kaepernick campaign: 'Just saying what millions of us think'
Suzy Byrne 22 hours ago While many are applauding Nike over its decision to feature Colin Kaepernick in a new ad campaign , country singer John Rich isn’t clapping on the sidelines.
The Big & Rich singer, who appeared on Donald Trump ’s Celebrity Apprentice , ripped the brand’s decision to make Kaepernick the face of its “Just Do It” 30th anniversary campaign — and showed off some ripped-up Nike socks, which he said belonged to a sound engineer for the band, for good measure. He also ranted about the former San Francisco 49ers quarterback’s “pig socks,” which Kaepernick wore while taking a knee on the field during the national anthem, and took jabs at people who criticized his point of view — of which there were many.
Rich’s first tweet showed Kaepernick’s “pig socks” with a pattern of a cartoon pig in a police officer uniform, which was an obvious jab at law enforcement in the athlete’s Black Lives Matter protest. The “Save a Horse (Ride a Cowboy)” singer, 44, said he’s boycotting the brand.
This iframe is not allowedWhen asked by a fan why Rich can’t “disagree but still respect the same rights of others,” Rich said that the discussion ended for him when Kaepernick compared “ police to PIGS.” ( For what it’s worth, the word “pig” has been used as a derogatory term for police for decades.)
This iframe is not allowedAfter moving on from his “pig socks” comments, Rich posted a picture of cut-up socks that he said belonged to a Big & Rich road crew member. He predicted there will be mass boycott of the brand and said Nike’s stock prices would immediately drop .
This iframe is not allowedIn a follow-up tweet, Rich promised they would later be burned, which others have been doing and documenting on Twitter.
This iframe is not allowedOther Twitter users — famous and not — laughed at the protest.
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Rich continued his rant.
This iframe is not allowedWhich included a lot of “#PIGSOCKS” tweets…
This iframe is not allowed…as well as calling those who disagreed with him “snowflakes.”
This iframe is not allowedHe later added that he supports “every American’s right to protest whatever they want,” but added that he would be boycotting Nike.
This iframe is not allowedRich, who has been making country hits as part of Big & Rich since 1998, hasn’t been shy about his political views. His group was tapped to perform at Trump’s pre-inaugural gala. Rich got to know the future president when he won Celebrity Apprentice in 2011. He said that Trump told him back then that he planned to run for president.
Donald Trump, John Rich, and Melania Trump attend “The Celebrity Apprentice” Season 4 finale at Trump SoHo on May 22, 2011, in New York City. (Photo: Jim Spellman/WireImage)
The president has been critical of Kaepernick and other NFL stars protesting in the past. He has yet to weigh in about Nike’s new campaign.
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