Carrie Underwood, Village People and more

On By Littum

Upper line

Carrie Underwood will perform at President-elect Donald Trump’s second inauguration next week, and the Village People — the band behind one of Trump’s favorite hits “YMCA” — said they will perform at several pre-inauguration events, a shift from his 2017 inauguration, which struggled to attract high-profile artists.

Key facts

Country music singer Carrie Underwood will perform “America the Beautiful” at Trump’s inauguration at the US Capitol on January 20, shortly before the president-elect takes the oath of office.

Village peoplethe group behind the “YMCA,” which became a fixture at Trump rallies where the president-elect would perform what became known as the “Trump dance,” announced in a Facebook post that it would perform at more inauguration events, supposedly inclusive a “victory rally” scheduled for Sunday.

Another event the Village People will perform at is an inaugural ball held on January 19 by a conservative political organization Turning point USAwhich will feature guests including group founder Charlie Kirk, Vice President JD Vance, Tulsi Gabbard, Donald Trump Jr., Vivek Ramaswamy and Ben Shapiro.

Country singer Lee Greenwood—whose song “God Bless The USA” is another Trump rally staple—will perform during the swearing-in ceremony, according to Associated Press.

Axios reported some other country music acts are scheduled to perform, including Jason Aldean and Rascal Flatts at Trump’s inaugural ball on Monday and Kid Rock and Billy Ray Cyrus at the “victory rally”.

Opera singer Christopher MacchioWHO has performed at several Republican events, including Trump’s controversial 2024 Madison Square Garden rally, will sing the national anthem at the inauguration, the singer’s management confirmed to more news businesses.

Why did these artists accept invitations to perform?

Both Underwood and Village People emphasized the need for unity in statements about their upcoming performances. Underwood said she was “humbled to answer the call at a time when we must all come together in a spirit of unity and look forward to the future.” In one Facebook postThe Village People admitted that the performances will not please all of their fans, but the group believes that “music should be performed without regard to politics.” The group acknowledged their “preferred candidate lost” – founding member Victor Willis previously said he supported Vice President Kamala Harris — but said they hope their song “YMCA” can “bring the country together after a tumultuous and divisive campaign.”

What is Trump’s history with “ymca”?

Trump has used the Village People’s “YMCA” at rallies throughout his 2020 and 2024 presidential campaigns, prompting a mixed reaction from the group. Willis at first appeared to have changed his attitude over the years demanding Trump stopped using the song in June 2020 after the then-president promised to use it military strength to break protests after the police killing of George Floyd. Three months later, a spokesperson for the group said Willis would not “sue him simply out of spite” because he is not a “Trump hater.” In May 2023, the Village People’s manager and Willis’ wife, Karen Willis, filed a cease-and-desist notice to denounce a Mar-a-Lago performance by the “YMCA” of performers dressed as the Village People, claiming that it falsely suggested the band had endorsed Trump. In October 2024 Willis said he had previously opposed Trump’s use of the song, but changed his mind because the renewed attention “greatly benefited” the song on the charts. During his rallies, Trump often performed the “Trump Dance” during “YMCA”, a simple movement of pumping both fists back and forth to the music. The dance was widely imitated by professional athletes to celebrate victories, including by San Francisco 49ers player Nick Bosa, a vocal Trump supporter, and American football team captain Christian Pulisic, who argued that it is not a political dance.

Key background

Trump’s upcoming inauguration looks set to be more star-studded than his first inauguration, which struggled to attract high-profile performers. Then-16-year-old Jackie Evancho, “America’s Got Talent” runner-up in 2010, sang the national anthem at Trump’s inauguration in 2017. Evancho said later her team pushed her to perform despite having a “bad feeling in her stomach” and she criticized Trump’s transgender rights policies, asking him on social media to meeting with her and her transgender sister, Juliet Evancho. Rock band 3 Doors Down and singer Toby Keith also performed at pre-inauguration events in 2017. Previous inauguration performers have included Lady Gaga, Garth Brooks, and Jennifer Lopez at President Joe Biden’s inauguration, and Beyoncé and Kelly Clarkson at former President Barack Obama’s 2013 inauguration.

Further reading

Village People founder would ‘seriously consider’ performing ‘YMCA’ for Trump – after demanding he stop playing it (Forbes)

These Athletes – From the NFL, UFC and American Football Embrace the ‘Trump Dance’ (Forbes)