Musician Cancels Kennedy Center Performance After Trump Name Added to Building

Written by Chantal Gapato  |  December 26, 2025

An annual Christmas Eve jazz concert at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts was canceled following controversy over the recent addition of President Donald Trump’s name to the building.

The concert, led since 2006 by jazz musician Chuck Redd, has been a long-standing holiday tradition at the Kennedy Center. Redd told CNN that he decided to cancel this year’s performance after learning that the center’s board had approved a renaming of the institution to include Trump’s name.

The decision was made by the Kennedy Center’s board on December 18, after the body—now largely composed of Trump-appointed members—voted to rename the national arts institution after both John F. Kennedy and Donald Trump. Trump was elected chair of the board earlier this year.

Redd said he made the decision to cancel the performance after seeing Trump’s name added to the building’s façade last week. “When I saw the name change happening last Friday, that’s when I made the decision,” he said.

The renaming has been met with opposition from several Democratic lawmakers who serve as ex officio board members due to their positions in Congress. They argue that the vote was conducted improperly, despite claims from the administration that the decision was unanimous.

On December 22, Rep. Joyce Beatty of Ohio filed a lawsuit challenging the legality of the renaming. She argues that under federal law, the institution remains officially named the John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts, and that the legislation establishing the center does not grant its board the authority to change its name.

The cancellation has added to the growing debate surrounding governance, political influence, and artistic independence at one of the country’s most prominent cultural institutions.

Photo courtesy of Robert Severi