JokersUpdates.com: Current Affairs - (People) Annual Christmas Eve Concert at Kennedy Center Canceled in Protest of Donald Trump's Name on the Building

Annual Christmas Eve Concert at Kennedy Center Canceled in Protest of Donald Trump's Name on the Building
The president’s name was added to signage on the venue's exterior on Dec. 19

By Raven Brunner Published on December 25, 2025 04:30PM EST

A Christmas Eve concert at the Kennedy Center was canceled after President Donald Trump’s name was added to the venue
“When I saw the name change on the Kennedy Center website and then hours later on the building, I chose to cancel our concert,” host Chuck Redd said

The president’s name was officially added to signage on the Kennedy Center’s exterior on Dec. 19
A Christmas Eve jazz concert at the Kennedy Center was canceled after President Donald Trump’s name was added to the venue.

The annual holiday concert, hosted by musician Chuck Redd, was supposed to take place on the afternoon of Wednesday, Dec. 24, at the venue in Washington D.C. However, Redd, 67, told The Associated Press that he pulled out of the festive show after seeing Trump’s name on the building.

“When I saw the name change on the Kennedy Center website and then hours later on the building, I chose to cancel our concert,” he said.

The John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts with President Donald Trump's name added on Dec. 19.

PEOPLE reached out to The Kennedy Center for comment on Dec. 25, but did not immediately hear back.

The Kennedy Center’s website currently states that it is the Trump Kennedy Center. The webpage for the event, advertised as “an evening of music that’ll fill you with holiday cheer," simply states that it was canceled with no additional information.

The president’s name was added to signage on the Kennedy Center’s exterior on Dec. 19. Photos from outside the building showed work crews adding "The Donald Trump and" above the previously existing lettering, which read, "The John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts."

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt announced the day before that the board of the historic venue had "voted unanimously" to rename the building to the "Trump-Kennedy Center."

Per Redd’s profile on the Kennedy Center website, he had his breakthrough with the Charlie Byrd Trio when he was just 21. He has also performed with the supergroup the Great Guitars.

The musician was a resident artist at The Smithsonian Jazz Café in Washington, D.C. from 2004 to 2008. Redd’s website states that he has been featured on over 80 recordings. His latest album, Groove City, was released in 2019.

Redd is not the only person opposing Trump’s name being added to the Kennedy Center building. Rep. Joyce Beatty, a Democrat from Ohio, accused Leavitt of misleading the public about the level of support behind renaming the venue in a Dec. 18 social media post.

"I'm sitting here in my congressional office in Washington, D.C., just ending a call with the Kennedy Center, where I serve as an ex-officio member," Beatty, 75, said in a video. "I am bringing this to you live today because what you may hear is that there was a unanimous vote to rename the Kennedy Center, the Trump Center."

"Be clear: I was on that call, and as I tried to push my button to voice my concern, to ask questions and certainly not to vote in support of this, I was muted. Each time I tried to speak, I was muted. Participants were not allowed to voice their concerns who were online, yet it was said at the end it was a unanimous vote," she continued.

Several artists have distanced themselves from the Kennedy Center in the wake of Trump’s interest, including Issa Rae and Lin-Manuel Miranda.

This year's Kennedy Center Honors awards ceremony, which was pre-taped before the host organization underwent its name change, rebranded its CBS broadcast on Dec. 23 to acknowledge Trump….

web page

Rio: "Warriors...Come out to playay!!!!!!!!!"