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Lee Greenwood shifts focus from music to politics?
Lee Greenwood's shocking career move has everyone talking
In a very critical attack that is going viral, Mike Johnson, Speaker of the House, recently criticised NFL in selecting Bad Bunny as the headliner of the 2026 Super Bowl halftime show, calling it a terrible choice.
As per Variety, he claimed that the performer would not have a wide appeal nationally, and said that he would have been better chosen with someone such as Lee Greenwood, who has a more patriotic legacy.
This remark brought the 82-year-old right into the limelight once again, not as a singer, but as a person who was also in the politics. Did Lee left his music career for politics. The truth is more nuanced.
Lee Greenwood: Music, and unrelenting political opinions
Lee Greenwood did not officially give up his music career. He has also continued to perform especially his famous song God Bless the U.S.A. which has been a regular part of political events and national ceremonies, according to the Fox News.
The transformation that happened to Kimberly Payne's husband, rather than his music, was his accommodation of his voice to the conservative politics. He has been playing Republican rallies over decades, and has been inseparable with the campaigns of Donald Trump.
Greenwood also addressed his performances at the Trump inauguration and the fact he was using his well-known song in political contexts in a January 2025 interview, as well as his continued work in politics.
Why Greenwood became more political than pop star
Patriotic branding: God Bless the U.S.A. is not just a hit song, but a patriotic song, which is performed in politics, naturalization ceremonies and other kinds of national events. That presented Greenwood a natural access to the political realms.
Cultural resonance
The music sells itself to a particular segment of the population that values all-American themes, which is an in-built receptacle to political messages.
Active participation
Greenwood has taken a more active role instead of merely allowing campaigns to use his music rather than just showing up to play live, endorsing campaigns, and even releasing God Bless the USA Bibles, which contain U.S. foundational documents.
Age and legacy
Greenwood grew older and started to produce less, but the musical product became more political, no longer attaining chart success, but affecting discussion.
Lee Greenwood did not necessarily abandon music to come to politics but slowly blended the two. His rise shows that an artist with heavy patriotic identity and a popular anthem can become a political icon - which makes him an obvious parallel to the discussion, such as the one by Johnson about the Super Bowl featuring Bad Bunny.