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And Finally Artist News
Garth Brooks joins performers at Joe Biden inauguration
By Andy Malt | Published on Tuesday 19 January 2021
Garth Brooks has announced that he will perform at the inauguration of Joe Biden tomorrow, joining Lady Gaga and Jennifer Lopez as the entertainment for the presidential swearing-in ceremony.
The country musician was quick to state that the decision to accept the invitation had no political motivation, as he has performed for every US president since Jimmy Carter in the late 70s, with the exception of Ronald Reagan.
The first time he actually performed at an inauguration, however, was Barack Obama’s in 2009. He noted that he had also been invited to play Donald Trump’s inauguration in 2016, but had been unable to do so due to prior commitments. Ah well.
“This is not a political statement”, he said of performing for Biden. “This is a statement of unity. I’m excited, nervous – all the good things, because this is history and it’s an honour to get to serve”.
He also dropped in a mention that he’s actually a Republican voter, if you were wondering about his ability to talk about unity. Which sort of sounds like a political statement. But whatever,
He goes on: “The main thing [the Biden administration is] pushing now is unity, and that’s right down my alley. I would say we’re more divided than ever, so that bridge that brings us together [is key]. I might be the only Republican at this place. But … I want us to offer a differing opinion and hug each other at the same football game … Because I want to spend the next ten years of my life not divided. I’m so tired of being divided”.
Meanwhile, Donald Trump, in the final days of his presidency, is attempting to give himself some sort of legacy beyond being that guy who incited a riot. His big plan is to build a “garden of American heroes” – a collection of more than 250 statues that will serve as “America’s answer” to the “reckless” vandalism of monuments to people connected to the slave trade last year.
The list of “American heroes” set to be commemorated in the park, which Trump announced yesterday with an executive order, seems almost entirely random. Not least because a number of them aren’t American. Of those that are though, there are a lot of musicians, including Elvis Presley, Frank Sinatra, Whitney Houston, Johnny Cash, Aretha Franklin, Louis Armstrong and Billie Holiday.
“The National Garden will be built to reflect the awesome splendour of our country’s timeless exceptionalism”, says Trump.
