Kennedy Center New Year's Eve concerts canceled after addition of Trump's name

Performers cancel concerts over renaming of Kennedy center

A prominent jazz group and a dance company have canceled shows at Washington's premier performing arts center to protest renaming of the venue to include US President Donald Trump. Family members of late president John F Kennedy and Democratic politicians have already expressed outrage over the change this month at the Kennedy Center rebaptising it the Trump-Kennedy Center. Now artists are voicing their disapproval. Several who were scheduled to…

Trump Furious After NYE Artists Cancel

Just before the start of 2026, a bitter cultural clash erupted in Washington as scheduled New Year's Eve performances at the Kennedy Centre were abruptly cancelled amid an escalating dispute over the institution's controversial renaming to include the name of US President Donald Trump. The cancellations have provoked an angry response from the Trump administration and reignited legal and political challenges to the rebrand. The Kennedy Centre, o…

Band cancels New Year's Eve shows after Kennedy Center name change: 'We are not turning away from our audience'

Jazz group the Cookers canceled their New Year's Eve performances. Jack Vartoogian/Getty; JIM WATSON/AFP via Getty  The Cookers, President Donald TrumpThe Kennedy Center will ring in 2026 with little fanfare after jazz supergroup the Cookers cancelled their New Year's Eve performances at the venue.The move comes nearly two weeks after the Kennedy Center board voted to rename the building the "Trump-Kennedy Center." President Donald Trump began a…

Makers of October 7 Play Are Resisting Media's Trump-Kennedy Center Campaign

Makers of October 7 Play Are Resisting Media's Trump-Kennedy Center Campaign Our friend Ann McIlhinney sent a note to supporters on Thursday about the "mainstream media" campaigning for cancellations at the Trump-Kennedy Center at year's end. The networks and newspapers were thrilled when jazz acts The Cookers and Chuck Redd canceled at the last minute over the addition of the president's name. Ann and her husband Phelim McAleer have made a num…

Several artists cancel scheduled performances at the Kennedy center

(CNN, KYMA) - Several artists are canceling performances at the kennedy center. The Cookers, a jazz group, backed out of two gigs set to take place New Year's Eve at the Washington, D.C. venue. They issued a statement on their website, saying they play music that "reaches across divisions rather than deepening them." The statement appears to be aimed at the center adding "Donald J. Trump" to its name earlier this month. Acts including Doug Varon…

Renaming prompts new round of cancellations

More artists canceled scheduled performances at the Kennedy Center after the addition of President Donald Trump's name to the facility, with jazz supergroup The Cookers pulling out of a planned New Year's Eve concert, and the institution's president saying the…