❌

Reading view

There are new articles available, click to refresh the page.

11 musical acts that performed at Donald Trump's inauguration events

President Donald Trump and his wife First Lady Melanie Trump attend the Commander-in-Chief Ball after Trump's inauguration.
President Donald Trump and his wife, First Lady Melanie Trump, at the Commander-in-Chief Ball after Trump's inauguration.

Carlos Barria/REUTERS

  • Donald Trump was sworn in as the 47th president of the United States on Monday.
  • Carrie Underwood performed a cappella at the swearing-in ceremony after an issue with the musical accompaniment.
  • The inaugural festivities included three balls, at which musicians, including Billy Ray Cyrus and Nelly, performed.

President-elect Donald Trump was sworn into office Monday for a second non-consecutive term, and his team enlisted the help of some celebrity acts for his inaugural ceremony and related events.

One such event, The Victory Rally, took place Sunday and featured performances by Kid Rock, Billy Ray Cyrus, and Village People.

On Inauguration Day, following Trump's swearing-in ceremony, three separate balls took place: the Liberty Ball, the Commander-in-Chief Ball, and the Starlight Ball.

Here is a list of 11 musical acts that performed at the 2025 inauguration events:

Carrie Underwood (Swearing-in ceremony)
Carrie Underwood performs on the day of US President Donald Trump's Presidential Inauguration at the Rotunda of the US Capitol in Washington, DC, on January 20, 2025.
Carrie Underwood says she is "honored to have been asked to sing at the Inauguration."

Kevin Lamarque / POOL / AFP

Carrie Underwood performed "America the Beautiful" a cappella after an apparent issue interfered with the planned musical accompaniment to her performance.

"I love our country and am honored to have been asked to sing at the Inauguration and to be a small part of this historic event," Underwood said in a statement to Business Insider on January 14. "I am humbled to answer the call at a time when we must all come together in the spirit of unity and looking to the future."

The "American Idol" alum has largely tried to stay out of politics throughout her career.

"I feel like more people try to pin me places politically," Underwood told The Guardian in 2019. "I try to stay far out of politics if possible, at least in public, because nobody wins. It's crazy. Everybody tries to sum everything up and put a bow on it, like it's black and white. And it's not like that."

Christopher Macchio (Swearing-in ceremony)
WASHINGTON, DC - JANUARY 20: Singer Christopher Macchio performs "The Star-Spangled Banner" at the inauguration of Donald Trump in the U.S. Capitol Rotunda on January 20, 2025 in Washington, DC. Donald Trump takes office for his second term as the 47th president of the United States.
Christopher Macchio sang "The Star-Spangled Banner" at the inauguration.

Saul Loeb - Pool/Getty Images

Opera singer Christopher Macchio performed the national anthem at the inauguration.

"It is with the deepest humility that I will perform our national anthem, to pay tribute to our great country, and to its newly sworn-in Commander-in-chief, President Donald J. Trump," Macchio said in a statement to BI on January 20.

A representative for Macchio also confirmed that the singer had performed during an inauguration party at the Trump National Golf Club in Sterling, Virginia, on Saturday, and is also scheduled to perform at the National Cathedral with the Marine Band Orchestra on Tuesday.

In 2020, Macchio sang at a White House memorial service for Trump's younger brother, Robert Trump, per the Associated Press.

More recently, in October, Macchio performed "New York, New York," at a Trump rally at Madison Square Garden.

Lady Gaga performed the national anthem at President Biden's swearing-in in 2021.

Lee Greenwood (Multiple events)
US musician Lee Greenwood performs during the inauguration ceremony before Donald Trump is sworn in as the 47th US President in the US Capitol Rotunda in Washington, DC, on January 20, 2025.
Greenwood performed at Trump's Victory Rally on Sunday and the inauguration on Monday.

SAUL LOEB / POOL / AFP

Lee Greenwood, best known for his song "God Bless the USA," has long been affiliated with Trump, and has appeared at multiple rallies for Trump. He performed at the Victory Rally on Sunday and again at the swearing-in ceremony on Monday.

"This particular time, we have elected to be live with the United States Marine Corps band, and that's going to have a particularly majestic presentation of my song," he told the Washington Examiner. "It'll be a wonderful appearance."

Village People (Multiple events)
Village People performing at Trump victory rally
Village People performing at Trump's Victory Rally.

JIM WATSON/AFP via Getty Images

During Sunday's Victory Rally and again at the Liberty Ball on Monday night, Trump danced along onstage as the Village People performed their signature song, "Y.M.C.A."

On January 13, Village People, the '70s disco band known for hits like "Macho Man," announced on its official Facebook page that it would be performing at "various events as part of the 2025 Inauguration of Donald J. Trump."

"We know this wont make some of you happy to hear however we believe that music is to be performed without regard to politics," the group's post read. "Our song Y.M.C.A. is a global anthem that hopefully helps bring the country together after a tumultuous and divided campaign where our preferred candidate lost."

The band's decision to perform at the inauguration events is a reversal of its stance from two years ago.

In 2023, the band's manager sent a cease-and-desist letter to Trump's lawyer, requesting that Trump stop using Village People's music and likeness at his events, following an "unauthorized" performance by a cover band at Mar-a-Lago.

A representative for Village People did not respond to a request for comment from BI.

Jason Aldean (Liberty Ball)
Jason Aldean performs at the Liberty Ball during the 60th Presidential Inauguration.
Jason Aldean has been a vocal supporter of Trump.

AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson

Jason Aldean, who Trump called a "fantastic guy" in 2023, also performed at the Liberty Ball.

He sang some of his popular hits, including "Try That in a Small Town." The song β€” which critics said had racist undertones and promoted gun violence β€” sparked controversy in 2023 because its accompanying video was filmed at a courthouse in Columbia, Tennessee, where a Black man was lynched in 1927.

Aldean responded to those accusations in aΒ statementΒ on X, saying that those references were "not only meritless but dangerous."

Before performing the song at the ball, Aldean doubled down on his stance.

"This next song kind of stirred up a little bit of some shit. But I've always said I stand by the song, I stand by the video, I stand by what it says," Aldean said. "And I think President Trump knows too, because he called me when it came out and told me he liked the song and what a great song it was, that kind of thing."

The musician has played at Mar-a-Lago on New Year's Eve at least twice, per Country Now.

A representative for Aldean did not respond to a request for comment from BI.

Billy Ray Cyrus (Multiple events)
Billy Ray Cyrus performs at the Liberty Ball during the 60th Presidential Inauguration,
Billy Ray Cyrus was among the performers at Sunday's Victory Rally.

AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson

Following a performance at the Victory Rally on Sunday, Billy Ray Cyrus took the stage again on Monday. He sang "Old Town Road" and "Achy Breaky Heart" during his set at the Liberty Ball, but his performance was riddled with technical issues.

At one point during his set, he couldn't hear his guitar. "Check, check, is anybody awake?" the singer said as he requested assistance from the stage crew.

"You all want to sing more or you just want me to get the hell off the stage? I don't give a damn," he said.

Some internet users also took to social media to criticize Cyrus' "embarrassingly awful" performance and his rough-sounding voice.

This comes after the country singer attended a Trump rally over the summer, as seen on Instagram.

His daughter, Miley Cyrus, has previously been a vocal critic of the president, calling him a "nightmare" in 2016, per People.

A representative for Cyrus did not have a statement for BI.

Nelly (Liberty Ball)
Rapper Nelly performing on stage.
The rapper says he is "not political."

John Medina/Getty Images

Nelly, the Grammy Award-winning rapper, performed some of his biggest hits, including "Hot in Herre" and "Dilemma," at the Liberty Ball.

On Sunday, during a YouTube stream hosted by rapper Willie D, Nelly defended his decision to perform and said that he was "not political."

"Performing for somebody and voting for somebody is two different things. Endorsing people is two different things," Nelly said during the stream.

The singer added that he wasn't too bothered by the backlash he received following the announcement of his performance.

"It is an honor for me to perform for the president of the United States, regardless of who is in office," he said. "If President Biden would have asked me to perform, I would have performed. If Vice President Kamala Harris would have won and asked me to perform, I would have performed."

He added that he wasn't "doing this for money."

A representative for Nelly did not immediately respond to a request for comment sent outside regular hours.

Rascal Flatts (Commander-in-Chief Ball)
Rascal Flatts performs at the Commander in Chief Ball, Monday,
Rascal Flatts performed at the Commander-in-Chief Ball.

AP Photo/Alex Brandon

Rascal Flatts performed at the Commander-in-Chief Ball.

Gary LeVox, the lead vocalist, had taken to Instagram last week to announce the band's performance.

"I am so humbled and honored and grateful for the opportunity again to play the inauguration of the 47th President of the United States. I got to play it in 2016 and now Rascal Flatts will be performing at the commanders ball and I am so looking forward to it!" LeVox wrote in an Instagram post.

The band β€” known for hits such as "Life is a Highway" and "What Hurts The Most" β€” disbanded in 2021 but announced last year that they would be coming together for a reunion tour to celebrate their 25th anniversary.

LeVox previously performed at the Veterans Inaugural Ball in 2017 without his bandmates.

Parker McCollum (Commander-in-Chief Ball)
Parker McCollum attends the 59th Academy of Country Music Awards at Omni Frisco Hotel at The Star on May 16, 2024
Parker McCollum is a country musician.

Jason Kempin/Getty Images

Parker McCollum also performed at the Commander-in-Chief Ball.

McCollum has been releasing music since 2013 and had something of a breakthrough in the last couple of years. His single "Burn It Down" was nominated for song of the year at the 2024 CMA Awards.

Gavin DeGraw (Starlight Ball)
Gavin DeGraw attends the 22nd Annual "Christmas At The Grove" Tree Lighting Celebration at The Grove on November 13, 2023
Gavin DeGraw is perhaps best known for singing the "One Tree Hill" theme song.

Matt Winkelmeyer/Getty Images

Gavin DeGraw performed at the final official ball of Monday evening, the Starlight Ball.

The singer is known for songs such as "I Don't Want to Be," "In Love with a Girl," and "Not Over You."

Kid Rock (Victory Rally)
Former U.S. President Donald Trump, UFC president Dana White, and Kid Rock pose fora photo during the UFC 295 event at Madison Square Garden on November 11, 2023 in New York City.
Kid Rock performed at the 2024 Republican National Convention last summer.

Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC/Getty Images

Kid Rock was one of multiple performers at the Victory Rally on Sunday.

Rock performed at the 2024 Republican National Convention last summer and appeared with Trump at a UFC fight in November, so it wasn't a surprise that he was tapped to celebrate him once again.

A representative for the rapper did not respond to a request for comment from BI.

Read the original article on Business Insider

❌