When Kid Rock heard a California fund manager had plans to demolish country music icon Hank Williams’ 170-year-old home, the Michigan rocker decided it was time to stand up against “those destroying American history.”
Kid Rock wants to be sure the former Nashville home of country music legend Hank Williams is not torn down. California fund manager Larry Keele bought the 268-acre property in 2021. Since then, local residents are raising concerns that the home, called Beechwood Hall, could be demolished.
The home was built in the 1850s near Franklin, Tennessee, and it survived the Civil War. In addition to Williams, country music stars Tim McGraw and Faith Hill also lived there. “We are sick of seeing history torn to the ground. Whether it be in the form of monuments, statues, and now something so important here in Nashville, like the former home of Hank Williams,” Kid Rock told Fox News’s Tucker Carlson, adding, “Where does this end?”
Local residents in support of “Save Historic Beechwood Hall” purport that despite promises to restore and preserve the property, “the house has been slowly dismantled and the front and back doors are being left wide open” in an effort to “create a perception that the property is ‘too far gone’ to be restored.”
The Heritage Foundation of Williamson County, a non-profit preservation organization, issued a statement saying that it was working in a “collaborative and positive manner” with the new owners to “create a comprehensive preservation plan, and bring resources and solutions to the table for discussion.”
Larry Keele reportedly denied plans for demolition, telling Fox News that “contrary to misinformation that is being published, no historical items have been placed in any burn pile and there is no scheduled demolition.” However, Kid Rock questioned the integrity of his intentions.
“It seems like another avenue to tear it down,” Kid Rock said. “I don’t think there is anything more important in country music, if not American music, than Hank Williams — the greatest songwriter of all time,” he added. “We kind of feel like we are under an invasion from the state of California, which we understand in a lot of ways.”
“I have a lot of friends here that come from these spots — California and New York City,” Kid Rock declared. “A lot of people say it, and they say it under their breath, but they’re scared to say it out loud. So, once again, I’ll be the guy: They come here leaving these woke policies in those cities for better schools, lower taxes, lower crime. You have talked about it a million times. We kind of tell them to leave your f-ing politics at the state line from where you’re coming.”
Kid Rock said he expects more to join the fight against demolishing Hank Williams’ home. “I think there’s going to be many, many people [who] will get on board,” he said. “They can go to savebeechwood.org, and I think you will see a lot more country music stars, musicians, just great people in the community that want to preserve this for the next generation to come. Generations beyond that. We hope to get this resolved in a good manner,” he concluded. “But, if not, we can get some hillbilly stuff goin’ on too.”
After Kid Rock called into question those claiming to “preserve” Hank Williams’ home, the Heritage Foundation issued another statement. “Sometimes preservation solutions are quick and easy; more often than not, they are difficult, complex, and time-consuming for all involved,” the non-profit said. Americans concerned with the “woke” movement to destroy historical landmarks can only hope that Larry Keele stays true to his word and does not demolish this historic home.