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The Kennedy Center is already losing performers after Donald Trump slapped his name on the storied arts institution.
Kristy Lee, a folk singer scheduled to perform at the John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts on Jan. 14, is in talks to cancel her appearance, her spokesperson told NOTUS, as other artists also move to sever ties with the venue.
One performer, who spoke to NOTUS on the condition of anonymity, said Trump’s renaming had left a permanent “stain” on the center.
Another lamented what the Kennedy Center once represented—for artists and for the country at large. “I feel really badly for performers, not just for performers but for the people who work there,” they said.
“Kennedy Center is supposed to be a memorial, focusing on being nonpartisan. A place where people, it doesn’t matter what party they believe in, should be performing and experiencing the arts together regardless of what their party is. And it has not become that.”
Other artists who reluctantly chose to keep their scheduled performances at the center told NOTUS they are doing so as an act of resistance to the 79-year-old president.
“Reality show personality and con artist aren’t the type of artist the center showcases,” one artist said. They added that they “don’t associate the arts, or this building, with Trump.”
“And I guess the real debate up till now is what you boycott it and help ensure it goes down the tubes,” the musician added. “Or do you do the concerts and keep the audiences that love going to the Kennedy Center. And make sure there’s something there after this guy leaves. And it could be restored from however he trashes it.”
The backlash follows an announcement Thursday from White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt that the John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts would be tackily renamed to include Trump’s name after a vote by the venue’s board, which is now stacked with MAGA loyalists.
“Congratulations to President Donald J. Trump, and likewise, congratulations to President Kennedy, because this will be a truly great team long into the future!” she wrote on X. “The building will no doubt attain new levels of success and grandeur.”
https://www.yahoo.com/news/articles/artist-pull-kennedy-center-show-161555516.html
Kristy Lee, a folk singer scheduled to perform at the John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts on Jan. 14, is in talks to cancel her appearance, her spokesperson told NOTUS, as other artists also move to sever ties with the venue.
One performer, who spoke to NOTUS on the condition of anonymity, said Trump’s renaming had left a permanent “stain” on the center.
Another lamented what the Kennedy Center once represented—for artists and for the country at large. “I feel really badly for performers, not just for performers but for the people who work there,” they said.
“Kennedy Center is supposed to be a memorial, focusing on being nonpartisan. A place where people, it doesn’t matter what party they believe in, should be performing and experiencing the arts together regardless of what their party is. And it has not become that.”
Other artists who reluctantly chose to keep their scheduled performances at the center told NOTUS they are doing so as an act of resistance to the 79-year-old president.
“Reality show personality and con artist aren’t the type of artist the center showcases,” one artist said. They added that they “don’t associate the arts, or this building, with Trump.”
“And I guess the real debate up till now is what you boycott it and help ensure it goes down the tubes,” the musician added. “Or do you do the concerts and keep the audiences that love going to the Kennedy Center. And make sure there’s something there after this guy leaves. And it could be restored from however he trashes it.”
The backlash follows an announcement Thursday from White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt that the John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts would be tackily renamed to include Trump’s name after a vote by the venue’s board, which is now stacked with MAGA loyalists.
“Congratulations to President Donald J. Trump, and likewise, congratulations to President Kennedy, because this will be a truly great team long into the future!” she wrote on X. “The building will no doubt attain new levels of success and grandeur.”
https://www.yahoo.com/news/articles/artist-pull-kennedy-center-show-161555516.html
