Donald Trump's golfing partner and Mar-a-Lago regular Jason Aldean, the recently reunited 2000s country trio Rascal Flatts and Country music artists including Texas singer Parker McCollum performed at a Washington, D.C., ceremony celebrating the incoming president. is about to become the first convicted felon to serve as President of the United States.
According to a press release from the Trump-Vance Inaugural Committee, Aldean will perform at the Liberty Inaugural Ball, one of three official inaugural balls — the other two being the Commander-in-Chief’s Ball and the Starlight Ball. — took place just hours after Trump was sworn in as the 47th president on Monday. Aldean and Trump's courtship began in early 2022, when the "Try It in a Small Town" singer attended the president's New Year's Eve party at his Florida resort and went to the golf course with him. Their bromance is just getting started: Aldean stood side by side with Trump at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee in July and was introduced at a rally in the country singer's home state of Georgia in October. he.
Rascal Flatts, a trio consisting of Gary LeVox, Joe Don Rooney and Jay DeMarcus, will perform at the Commander-in-Chief Ball. Frontman LeVox performed solo at the Veterans Inauguration Ball during Trump's first inauguration in 2017. McCollum is also in the Commander-in-Chief lineup.
News about Aldean and Rascal Fratz's inauguration comes after it was announced on January 6, 2021 that Carrie Underwood would perform "America the Beautiful" during the inauguration at the U.S. Capitol. The building was besieged by a violent mob of Trump supporters.
Underwood explained her decision to attend in a statement: "I love our country and was honored to be asked to sing at the inauguration and to be a small part of this historic event. We must do so in a spirit of unity. , looking forward to the moment, I am honored to answer this call." Still, Underwood received some backlash, especially from the LGBTQ community, who preferred her 2012 inclusive song "Love Wins." ("As a married person, I don't know what it feels like to be told that I can't marry the person I love, but want to be. I can't imagine what that feels like," she said at the time.)
In addition to Underwood, Lee Greenwood will also attend the inauguration, having performed in 2017 and is expected to sing his signature flag-waving song "Proud to be an American" again. Greenwood is currently selling an "Inauguration Day Edition" of his God Bless America Bible, which Trump promotes.
A "victory rally" is planned for Sunday night, the eve of the inauguration, featuring performances by Kid Rock, Billy Ray Cyrus and the Village People, whose song "YMCA" is often played at Trump rallies. In 2023, Country People issued a cease-and-desist order against the Trump campaign for using their songs, but the disco act has apparently taken a U-turn.
“We are announcing today that Village People has accepted an invitation from President-elect Trump’s campaign to participate in inaugural events, including at least one event with President-elect Trump,” band members include a construction worker, a police officer and a caricature of a police officer. a cowboy, said in a statement.
"We know this won't make some of you happy to hear it, but we believe music should be performed without politics in mind. Our song 'YMCA' is a global anthem that hopefully will help the entire country during a time of chaos And a divided campaign united while our favorite candidate failed."
Victor Willis - a "policeman" and sometimes a "naval officer" - is the only original member of the village. Plus: Gavin DeGraw will headline Ball of the Stars.