U.S. President Donald Trump announces nominees for the annual Kennedy Center Honors in Washington, D.C., on Wednesday.Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images
Country musician George Strait, action movie star Sylvester Stallone, and rock band Kiss will be celebrated with the 2025 Kennedy Center Honors, one of the highest accolades in American performing arts, U.S. President Donald Trump announced on Wednesday.
English stage actor Michael Crawford, known for The Phantom of the Opera, and I Will Survive singer Gloria Gaynor will also be honoured at the event later this year.
Trump said he was asked to host the event, which will air on CBS in December, and reluctantly accepted.
“I didn’t want to do it. OK?” Trump said. “They’re going to say he insisted. I did not insist. But I think it will be quite successful.”
Trump arrived at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts on Wednesday to unveil its 2025 honorees for artistic excellence and tout a major renovation as lawmakers push to rename the venue for the Republican president.
A photo of country music artist George Strait is unveiled as Trump announces the first nominees of the Kennedy Center Honors since taking control of the centre’s board earlier this year.Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images
In a post on his Truth Social platform on Tuesday, Trump teased the announcement, saying, “GREAT Nominees for the TRUMP/KENNEDY CENTER, whoops, I mean, KENNEDY CENTER, AWARDS.”
Trump also hinted at a physical overhaul of the center in Washington, D.C., saying he planned to restore it to the “absolutely top level of luxury, glamour, and entertainment.” No details were immediately available.
Since returning to power in January, Trump has sought to put his stamp on American culture and institutions to align them closer with his political and personal preferences. His administration has ordered a review of some Smithsonian museums and exhibitions to “remove divisive or partisan narratives.” At the White House, Trump has added gold leaf to the Oval Office, paved over the Rose Garden, and embarked on plans for a $200-million ballroom.
Trump did not attend events at the Kennedy Center during his first term but has taken a keen interest in it during his second, vowing to overhaul an institution he and his “Make America Great Again” supporters view as too liberal.
He pushed out its chairman in February and took on the role himself, fired its long-time president, and installed his former ambassador to Germany, Richard Grenell, as interim president.
In a post on X, the Kennedy Center said its building – which opened in September 1971 – would undergo renovations thanks to Trump’s advocacy aimed at restoring its “prestige and grandeur.”
Republicans recently voted as part of a sweeping tax cut and spending bill to earmark $257 million for the building’s renovation, conditional on the opera house being named after first lady Melania Trump.
Republican Representative Bob Onder in July introduced a bill that would rename the modernist building the Donald J. Trump Center for the Performing Arts. Trump last visited the Kennedy Center in June for a performance of “Les Miserables,” where he and his wife were met with a loud mix of boos and cheers.
Ticket and subscription sales have fallen since Trump’s conservative takeover of the venue, and some shows, including the hit “Hamilton,” have cancelled their engagements.
Under his leadership, the center has sought to add conservative-leaning programming, including a show that Grenell has described as a celebration of the birth of Christ.
