Xmas Eve blues: Kennedy Center jazz show cancelled over Trump renaming
- - Xmas Eve blues: Kennedy Center jazz show cancelled over Trump renaming
Davis Winkie, USA TODAY December 25, 2025 at 9:02 PM
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An annual Christmas Eve jazz concert at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington was cancelled because the center’s Donald Trump-appointed board added the president's name to the building last week.
Chuck Redd, the musician who has led the show since 2006, told CNN that he called off the show “when I saw the name change happening last Friday."
The center’s board, which Trump filled with allies who then elected him chair earlier this year, voted to rename the national music, arts, and culture institution after both Trump and Kennedy on Dec. 18.
More: Trump's name quickly added to facade of Kennedy Center
to rename the facility "The Donald J. Trump and The John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts."
" style=padding-bottom:56%>Workers begin adjusting the name of the "John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts" on December 19, 2025 in Washington, DC. The Kennedy Center Board of Trustees voted in what they say was a unanimous decision to rename the facility "The Donald J. Trump and The John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts."
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Workers begin adjusting the name of the "John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts" on December 19, 2025 in Washington, DC. The Kennedy Center Board of Trustees voted in what they say was a unanimous decision to rename the facility "The Donald J. Trump and The John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts."
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Workers begin adjusting the name of the "John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts" on December 19, 2025 in Washington, DC.
">Workers begin adjusting the name of the "John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts" on December 19, 2025 in Washington, DC.
" src=https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/1FrEJoSV0tqsptzGieGGQQ--/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTEyNDI7aD04Mjg-/https://media.zenfs.com/en/usa_today_slideshows_242/0ad6c938f929e3926dcfeb3cc2160d83 class=caas-img>Workers begin adjusting the name of the "John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts" on December 19, 2025 in Washington, DC.
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Workers begin adjusting the name of the "John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts" on December 19, 2025 in Washington, DC.
">Workers begin adjusting the name of the "John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts" on December 19, 2025 in Washington, DC.
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Workers begin adjusting the name of the "John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts" on December 19, 2025 in Washington, DC.
">Workers begin adjusting the name of the "John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts" on December 19, 2025 in Washington, DC.
" src=https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/x8I3UaWcMeG8Ldz24OlqyA--/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTEyNDI7aD04Mjg-/https://media.zenfs.com/en/usa_today_slideshows_242/be2e1cdbc589282f9c7acfe67acd1ea0 class=caas-img>Workers begin adjusting the name of the "John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts" on December 19, 2025 in Washington, DC.
" data-src=https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/SXQ2aKDe4SX8_wj4QvjHyg--/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTEyNDI7aD04Mjg-/https://media.zenfs.com/en/usa_today_slideshows_242/0454e328622a39000a7fbe66b196ddfd class=caas-img data-headline="John F. Kennedy Memorial Center adds Trump to name. See the change" data-caption="
Workers begin adjusting the name of the "John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts" on December 19, 2025 in Washington, DC.
">Workers begin adjusting the name of the "John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts" on December 19, 2025 in Washington, DC.
" src=https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/SXQ2aKDe4SX8_wj4QvjHyg--/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTEyNDI7aD04Mjg-/https://media.zenfs.com/en/usa_today_slideshows_242/0454e328622a39000a7fbe66b196ddfd class=caas-img>Workers begin adjusting the name of the "John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts" on December 19, 2025 in Washington, DC.
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Workers begin adjusting the name of the "John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts" on December 19, 2025 in Washington, DC.
">Workers begin adjusting the name of the "John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts" on December 19, 2025 in Washington, DC.
" src=https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/8cWmc6jTaEC4m6psjF__0A--/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTEyNDI7aD04Mjg-/https://media.zenfs.com/en/usa_today_slideshows_242/a156437df21f789aedb2f11dfd1314d5 class=caas-img>Workers begin adjusting the name of the "John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts" on December 19, 2025 in Washington, DC.
" data-src=https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/DnufNB8MjYV8Un7ErVuE6w--/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTEyNDI7aD04Mjg-/https://media.zenfs.com/en/usa_today_slideshows_242/6d3d0c1a104b46a8f3814f5c6f0899ab class=caas-img data-headline="John F. Kennedy Memorial Center adds Trump to name. See the change" data-caption="
Workers begin adjusting the name of the "John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts" on December 19, 2025 in Washington, DC.
">Workers begin adjusting the name of the "John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts" on December 19, 2025 in Washington, DC.
" src=https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/DnufNB8MjYV8Un7ErVuE6w--/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTEyNDI7aD04Mjg-/https://media.zenfs.com/en/usa_today_slideshows_242/6d3d0c1a104b46a8f3814f5c6f0899ab class=caas-img>Workers begin adjusting the name of the "John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts" on December 19, 2025 in Washington, DC.
" data-src=https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/IE.UKXbrkLf_eMaiahM9YA--/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTEyNDI7aD04Mjg-/https://media.zenfs.com/en/usa_today_slideshows_242/454c0ad64752d787d2b46505c340d4d0 class=caas-img data-headline="John F. Kennedy Memorial Center adds Trump to name. See the change" data-caption="
Workers begin adjusting the name of the "John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts" on December 19, 2025 in Washington, DC.
">Workers begin adjusting the name of the "John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts" on December 19, 2025 in Washington, DC.
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1 / 8John F. Kennedy Memorial Center adds Trump to name. See the change
Workers begin adjusting the name of the "John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts" on December 19, 2025 in Washington, DC. The Kennedy Center Board of Trustees voted in what they say was a unanimous decision to rename the facility "The Donald J. Trump and The John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts."
Democratic lawmakers who hold ex-officio board seats due to their roles in Congress argued that the vote, which the administration claimed was unanimous, was conducted improperly. An ex-officio board member, Rep. Joyce Beatty, D-Ohio, filed a lawsuit Dec. 22 claiming that the name change is illegal.
U.S. President Donald Trump poses on the red carpet for the 2025 Kennedy Center Honors at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, D.C., U.S., December 7, 2025.
More: Lawmaker sues Trump, calls Kennedy Center rebrand 'flagrant violation'
Under federal law, the center’s name remains the John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts. The legislation that established the center did not give its board the ability to change its name.
Contributing: Joey Garrison, USA TODAY, Reuters
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Why the Kennedy Center’s annual Christmas Eve jazz show was cancelled
Source: “AOL Breaking”
