USA TODAY International Edition
Waffle House hero steps in for Kid Rock
When the dust settled, the clouds parted and the parade finally began, it was James Shaw Jr. in the grand marshals’ chariot.
Shaw, the hero of Nashville’s Waffle House shooting, became a last-minute substitute for grand marshal at the city’s annual Christmas Parade on Saturday, stepping in for musician Kid Rock after was ousted by sponsors for insulting television personality Joy Behar on live television on Friday morning.
As the parade began, Shaw hopped into a horse drawn carriage alongside relatives of Akilah Dasilva, a musician killed in the shooting.
“It warms the heart to be here with the Dasilva family,” Shaw said as he climbed into the carriage.
Uncertainty about who would be grand marshal continued to the moments before the parade. Although most parade sponsors said Kid Rock would be removed on Friday, they were not all in agreement. Sponsor Steve Smith, a prominent Broadway businessman who has partnered with Rock on a new honky tonk bar, vowed that Rock would stay grand marshal as of Friday afternoon.
That confusion carried into Saturday morning, as parade prep began in a light drizzle with no clear grand marshal chosen. As they lined up floats and inflated balloons, parade workers had no idea who would sit in the chariot.
Rock posted on Instagram that his parade “had been rained on” and that he would instead spend the day with his family and granddaughter. “Sending well wishes for a break in the rain and a successful parade,” Rock wrote.