Trump to visit Kennedy Center to announce 2025 honorees and promote major changes to the venue
In a post on his Truth Social platform on Tuesday, Trump teased the announcement, saying, 'GREAT Nominees for the TRUMP/KENNEDY CENTER, whoops, I mean, KENNEDY CENTER, AWARDS.'
Trump also teased a physical overhaul of the center in Washington, D.C., saying he planned to restore it to the 'absolutely top level of luxury, glamour, and entertainment.' No details were immediately available.
Since returning to power in January, Trump has sought to put his stamp on American culture and institutions to align them closer with his political and personal preferences.
His administration has ordered a review of some Smithsonian museums and exhibitions to 'remove divisive or partisan narratives.' At the White House, Trump has added gold leaf to the Oval Office, paved over the Rose Garden, and embarked on plans for a $200-million ballroom.
Trump did not attend events at the Kennedy Center during his first term but has taken a keen interest in it during his second, vowing to overhaul an institution he and his 'Make America Great Again' supporters view as too liberal.
He pushed out its chairman in February and took on the role himself, fired its longtime president, and installed his former ambassador to Germany, Richard Grenell, as interim president.
In a post on X, the Kennedy Center said its building — which opened in September 1971 — would undergo renovations thanks to Trump's advocacy aimed at restoring its 'prestige and grandeur.'
The arts facility also hinted at the 2025 winners: 'A country music icon, an Englishman, a New York City Rock band, a dance Queen and a multi-billion dollar Actor walk into the Kennedy Center Opera House….'
Republicans recently voted as part of a sweeping tax cut and spending bill to earmark $257 million for the building's renovation, conditional on the opera house being named after first lady Melania Trump.
Republican Representative Bob Onder in July introduced a bill that would rename the modernist building the Donald J. Trump Center for the Performing Arts.
Trump last visited the Kennedy Center in June for a performance of 'Les Miserables,' where he and his wife were met with a loud mix of boos and cheers.
Ticket and subscription sales have fallen since Trump's conservative takeover of the venue, and some shows, including the hit 'Hamilton,' have canceled their engagements.
Under his leadership, the center has sought to add conservative-leaning programming, including a show that Grenell has described as a celebration of the birth of Christ.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
15 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Russia decree opens door for Exxon return to Sakhalin-1 project
MOSCOW (Reuters) -Russian President Vladimir Putin on Friday signed a decree that could allow foreign investors, including top U.S. oil major Exxon Mobil, to regain shares in the Sakhalin-1 oil and gas project. The signing of the decree comes on the day Russian president Vladimir Putin meets Donald Trump in Alaska for a summit where opportunities for investment and business collaboration will be on the agenda, alongside talks to find peace in Ukraine. Friday's decree was published as a follow-up to one Putin signed in October 2022, which ordered the seizure of the Sakhalin-1 project. Exxon previously held a 30% operator share in the lucrative project, and is the only non-Russian investor to have quit its stake. Exxon did not immediately reply to Reuters request for comment. The path to Western investment returning to Russia is unclear given the U.S. and European Union would need to lift far-reaching sanctions to facilitate investment. Companies who might wish to return, having spent significant amounts of money to exit the country three years ago, also face high barriers put up by the Russian government. Trump and his team have considered what sanctions they may be able to lift quickly in the case of progress in talks. Sakhalin-1 has to date not been directly designated under extensive U.S. sanctions on Russian energy. The decree stipulates that foreign shareholders must undertake actions to support the lifting of Western sanctions if they want to regain their share. They must also conclude contracts for supplies of necessary foreign-made equipment to the project, and transfer funds to Sakhalin-1 project accounts. Exxon took an impairment charge of $4.6 billion to exit its Russian business after Moscow sent troops into Ukraine in February 2022. In December 2024, Putin signed a decree extending the sale period for the unclaimed Exxon stake in Sakhalin-1 until 2026. The October 2022 decree established Rosneft subsidiary Sakhalinmorneftegaz-shelf as the new operator, allowing the Russian government to decide foreign investors' ownership rights in Sakhalin-1. Alongside Exxon, Russian company Rosneft, India's ONGC Videsh and Japan's SODECO were partner investors. The Russian government allowed both ONGC Videsh and SODECO to keep their stakes. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Yahoo
15 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Why Pete Davidson's Hillary Clinton tattoo is the one he won't remove
NEW YORK – Pete Davidson's committed to removing his tattoos, but his Hillary Clinton ink isn't going anywhere. Though the comedian is in the process of removing upwards of 200 tattoos from his body, he revealed on The Breakfast Club that the image of Clinton on his leg is here to stay. 'I love Hillary. I got Hillary after she lost,' he told the hosts on their Power 105.1 morning show. 'One, I know her personally and she's a lovely lady. But also … she's tough, man. She was really at the forefront of some bulls–t and as someone who's been at the forefront of some bulls–t, I just wanted to, like, cheer her up a little bit.' When asked what the 2016 presidential candidate had to say about the body ink, the SNL alum replied, 'she loves it.' 'What was cute was when I got them removed, she hit me up and was like, 'You're not removing me are you'?' he said. 'I was like, 'Of course not!' Hillary stays.' Davidson also said his 'feelings changed' about the tattoos as he's gotten older. 'My tattoos sucked. They were all drug-fueled,' Davidson admitted. 'I just looked at myself in rehab for the first time when I was sober and was just like, 'Oh no. What did I do'?' The 31-year-old still thinks 'tattoos are cool,' but only when they have 'meaning' to them. 'Mine just weren't,' he said when explaining his decision to start the removal process in 2020. 'So I just started burning them off. Burning them off sucks.' The Staten Island native offered his advice to those considering ink:'If anyone is thinking of getting a tattoo, I would recommend thinking about it for a couple years, 'cause your feelings change.' A source told People that The Pickup' actor has spent $200,000 on the removal process.
Yahoo
15 minutes ago
- Yahoo
US rapper Sean Kingston jailed for million-dollar fraud scheme
US rapper Sean Kingston has been sentenced to three-and-a-half years in prison after being convicted of a one million dollar (£738,000) fraud scheme in which he leveraged his fame to dupe sellers into giving him luxury items he then never paid for. Kingston, whose legal name is Kisean Paul Anderson, and his mother, Janice Eleanor Turner, were each convicted in March by a federal jury of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and four counts of wire fraud. Turner was sentenced to five years in prison last month. The singer apologised to judge David Leibowitz before he was sentenced in South Florida, saying he had learned from his actions. His lawyer asked if he could self-surrender at a later date due to health issues, but the judge ordered Kingston to be taken into custody immediately. The rapper, who was wearing a black suit and white shirt, removed his suit jacket and was handcuffed and led from the courtroom. Kingston, 35, and his mother were arrested in May 2024 after a raid on his rented mansion in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Turner was taken into custody during the raid, while Kingston was arrested at Fort Irwin, an Army training base in California's Mojave Desert, where he was performing. According to court records, Kingston used social media from April 2023 to March 2024 to arrange purchases of high-end merchandise. After negotiating deals, Kingston would invite the sellers to one of his high-end Florida homes and promise to feature them and their products on social media. Investigators said that when it came time to pay, Kingston or his mother would text the victims fake receipts for the luxury merchandise, which included a bulletproof Escalade vehicle, watches and a 19ft (5.9-metre) LED TV, investigators said. When the funds never cleared, victims often contacted Kingston and Turner repeatedly, but were either never paid or received money only after filing lawsuits or contacting police. Kingston, who was born in Florida and raised in Jamaica, shot to fame aged 17 with the hit Beautiful Girls, which laid his lyrics over Ben E King's 1961 song Stand By Me. The song was at number one in the UK singles chart for four weeks in 2007.
