Kid Rock: Cowboy, Not Cornball

Rocker testifies in civil suit against him, denies asking alleged victims, "Who wants a piece of me next?"

Is the proof in the put-down?

Accused of aiding in the assault of three guys who asked for his autograph in 2006, Kid Rock testified Friday in Los Angeles Superior Court that, first of all, the plaintiffs are lying when they say he lashed out at them with the threat: "Who wants a piece of me next?"

"I wouldn't say something corny like that," the self-proclaimed badass said on the stand, before further denying that he punched, kicked or in any other way assaulted Michael Medlin, Jose Perez and Carlos Bonilla, who sued the music star in March 2008.

"It was kind of chaotic," Rock remembered. "There were cameras everywhere and people yelling."

And yeah, maybe things got out of hand, but not because of him, the rocker added.

A member of the rap group Boo-Yaa T.R.I.B.E., whom he was hanging with in the wee hours of March 22, 2006, at the Hollywood Roosevelt hotel, pushed one of the plaintiffs—but not because he asked him to, Rock testified.

"In L.A. and New York, you know they're not your fans," the Detroit-born singer said, giving a nod to his adoptive Southern fan base. "If it's chaotic, I'm not going to give autographs."

The guy whom his rapper friend pushed was "kind of invading our space," said Rock, whose real name is Robert Ritchie.

He does not know how the plaintiffs' cameras ended up in the limo he and his pals left in, either, he said. "I said to get rid of them, take them back to the hotel, call the police, whatever," he said, denying that he helped grab the guys' cameras and bags or told his entourage to grab them.

Joking to the plaintiffs' attorney, Howard Levine, about just how amiable he usually is about autographs under the right circumstances, he pointed out that he signed autographs for Levine's secretaries when he showed up for a deposition.

Levine said he didn't remember, to which Rock replied, "I have a better memory than you, touché."

Medlin, Perez and Bonilla are asking for at least $15 million in damages from Rock, the Boo-Yaa T.R.I.B.E., the Roosevelt and its big-deal nightclub Teddy's, and Lost Highway touring.