Kid Rock’s Marriages and Romantic Life: What to Know

Kid Rock likes making a splash wherever he goes, and his love life is no different. From a high-profile marriage to Pamela Anderson and the subsequent divorce to his recent “wedding” to country icon Loretta Lynn at a self-proclaimed “hillbilly soiree” this weekend, the “Cowboy” artist has had his fair share of love and loss over the years as he made a name for himself in country and rock circles. Keep reading for more about his romances, engagements and marriages, going all the way back to his high school sweetheart.

Kelley Russell

Kid Rock’s first serious romance was with high school sweetheart Kelley Russell, whom he dated on and off for 10 years while growing up in Detroit. In 1993, the two welcomed son Robert James Ritchie, Jr., but seven years later would become embroiled in a vicious custody battle that ended when Kid won full custody of his son. Russell has stayed out of the spotlight since then, and the singer hasn’t spoken extensively about their time together to the public. 

Jaime Pressly and Jaime King

Two years after Kid Rock stepped into the national limelight in 1998, he was connected romantically with Jaime King, who would go on to marry husband Kyle Newman in 2007. From January to April 2004, Kid dated another Jaime, getting together with My Name Is Earl actress Jaime Pressly for a couple months before splitting due to their hectic schedules.

Pressly told Us Weekly at the time, “We’re both working a lot, and I can’t fly across the country and give up everything. But we’re still best friends, and we talk every day. Maybe someday we’ll get married!”

Pamela Anderson

Kid Rock’s most high-profile romance came when he met Pamela Anderson, whom he would be with on and off from 2001 to 2007 after first meeting backstage at New York’s Radio City Music Hall during a VH1 Divas Live tribute to Aretha Franklin. “It was right around Easter — the next day she sent me Easter eggs and a ton of s—,” Rock told Rolling Stone. “It was fun, it was crazy, it was f—in’ rock & roll. It felt like I was doing exactly what I should have been doing, following the rock & roll hand­book.”

The two got engaged in 2003, but headaches with the prenuptial agreement prompted them to call things off until they reconnected in 2006 at a mutual friend’s yacht party.  “A week later,” Rock said, “it was like, ‘Let’s just f—in’ get married and get it over with.’”

Divorce

Things were tense between the two from the start of their marriage, Rock recalled, accusing Anderson of using a miscarriage to manipulate him, amongst other things. The two would only be married for a few months before divorcing in 2007. The Baywatch alum told Rolling Stone of his accusations about her time in their marriage, “I hope he’s happy in life. We were married for four months. If he has nothing nice to say about me, then please tell him to stop talking about me.”

Kellie Pickler

Just a year later, sources claimed that Kid had bounced back with American Idol alum Kellie Pickler. “The romance between Kellie and Kid has been the worst-kept secret in Nashville,” an insider told San Francisco Gate in 2009. Pickler did make reference to a man she was seeing at the time, whom people claimed was Kid. “I’m seeing someone. I got a man. He’s a great, great guy. We’ve been seeing each other for over a year,” she said during a radio interview. The two never addressed the relationship rumors, but if there was anything there, it didn’t last for long.

Audrey Berry

Kid’s next serious relationship came “a couple of years” after his marriage ended, when he met fiancée Audrey Berry in a local restaurant. The two dated on and off until April 2017, when he reportedly popped the question and Berry was seen with a massive diamond ring on her left hand on the Chillin’ the Most fan cruise. The two never tied the knot, however. 

During a 2015 interview with Q Magazine, Kid opined, “Life is so much simpler being with one girl. Now I’m not chasing chicks around I’ve got so much more free time.”

Loretta Lynn

Kid Rock’s second “marriage” came just this weekend when he popped the question at a “hillbilly soirée” to country music icon Loretta Lynn. The spur-of-the-moment proposal came as Lynn, 88, watched her son renew his vows at a function that Kid happened to also be attending.

“Things got crazy,” Lynn wrote on Instagram. “We’ve always teased about getting ourselves married. Well, the preacher was already there so we had some fun with it. Sorry girls, he’s taken now!”

Granddaughter Tayla Lynn also posted about the “wedding” on Instagram. “Now you must understand how close Kid and Memaw have gotten,” she wrote. “Like they adore each other. They joke around all the time about getting married and saying to heck with the rest of em.”