WASHINGTON, 25 December 2025 — A long-standing Christmas Eve jazz concert at the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts has been canceled after the iconic Washington, D.C. venue’s board, newly filled with allies of Donald Trump, added the president’s name to its signage, triggering public backlash and prompting the concert’s host to withdraw in protest.
The show’s longtime host, jazz musician Chuck Redd, announced that he called off the performance after the performing arts centre’s website and exterior began reflecting a new name that includes Trump’s, the Donald J. Trump and The John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts, following a board vote last week. Redd has led the annual holiday “Jazz Jam” event for nearly two decades.
“When I saw the name change … I chose to cancel our concert,” Redd told The Associated Press in an email.
Controversial Name Change Sparks Outrage
The venue’s board, which Trump has reshaped by ousting previous appointees and installing loyalists, voted to append his name to the famous cultural institution. The renaming, implemented swiftly on both signage and the centre’s website, has drawn criticism from lawmakers, Kennedy family members and legal scholars, many of whom maintain the change violates federal law governing the centre’s memorial status.
The centre was originally established by Congress in 1964 as a living memorial to President John F. Kennedy, with statutory protections that prohibit adding another individual’s name without legislative approval. Critics argue the board’s action exceeds its authority.
Democratic U.S. Representative Joyce Beatty of Ohio, who also serves as an ex-officio trustee of the Kennedy Center board, has filed a lawsuit challenging the renaming, asserting board members lacked legal power to make the change and that she was muted during the meeting where the vote happened.
Broader Backlash and Boycotts
The cancellation adds to a string of cultural responses since the renaming controversy erupted, with some performers and companies distancing themselves from the centre. Several artists have canceled scheduled appearances amid concerns over the board’s decisions and perceived political influence on the institution.
The Kennedy Center, a premier U.S. cultural institution, has yet to publicly respond to requests for comment on the concert’s cancellation or the broader controversy surrounding its new branding.
