Does Carrie Underwood signal a Trump thaw for A-list celebs?
Hollywood and celebrity A-listers did everything in their power to stop Donald Trump from returning to the White House last year, bringing to the campaign trail megastars including Taylor Swift, George Clooney, Beyonce, Katy Perry and Oprah, among others.
They failed. But, unlike in 2017, there are early signs that celebs may be willing to warm to President-elect Trump.
Country music star Carrie Underwood made headlines this week by agreeing to perform “America the Beautiful” at Trump's inauguration on Monday, a notably higher caliber star than he usually attracts. His 2017 inauguration performers included 3 Doors Down, Toby Keith, Big & Rich and “America’s Got Talent” runner-up Jackie Evancho.
By comparison, President Biden had Katy Perry, Lady Gaga, Jennifer Lopez, John Legend, Bruce Springsteen and Garth Brooks at his inauguration.
Underwood’s announcement raised eyebrows. Up until now, she has largely steered clear of partisan politics. The singer defended her decision to perform right before Trump takes the oath of office not with an endorsement, but with a call for unity in fiercely partisan political era.
“I love our country and am honored to have been asked to sing at the Inauguration and to be a small part of this historic event,” Underwood said in a statement to USA Today. “I am humbled to answer the call at a time when we must all come together in the spirit of unity and looking to the future.”
She was met with intense backlash from progressive fans, some of whom flooded her Instagram account with anger and disappointment. But not all the reactions from Trump critics were negative.
Whoopi Goldberg, a fierce Trump detractor and co-host of “The View,” said she supports Underwood’s decision, even though she will not be tuning in.
"I stand behind her," Goldberg said. "If I believe I have the right to make up my mind to go perform someplace, I believe they have the same right.”
Montclair State University associate professor Joel Penney, the author of “Pop Culture, Politics, and the News: Entertainment Journalism in the Polarized Media Landscape,” argues that appearing with Trump carries less stigma now.
Trump’s favorability is at an all-time high. He not only won the Electoral College count in the 2024 election but also won the popular vote — a first in his three presidential runs — by more than 2 million.
“[Celebrity performers] are in the business of selling their public image, and they have to be very aware of their audience,” Penney said in an interview with The Hill. “If they are going to associate at all with politics, how that’s going to affect their bottom line.”
Penney attributed Underwood’s decision to her genre of country music, which tends to be more supportive of conservative politics. He said he would have been much more surprised if a leading hip-hop artist had agreed to perform.
“Everything now is in this frame of … hyper partisanship, polarization, culture war. And so any artist who shows up … and stands next to Trump is going to be widely perceived as [a supporter].”
Underwood will be joined during inauguration weekend by MAGA-friendly country artists including singers Kid Rock, Jason Aldean, Rascal Flatts and Lee Greenwood.
The Village People, famous for Trump rally staple hits “Y.M.C.A.” and “Macho Man,” will perform at Trump’s Sunday night rally at Capital One Arena in Washington. Like Underwood, they justified the performance as a symbol of unity, not as an endorsement for the incoming president.
Less than two years ago, the group’s lead singer objected to Trump’s use of “Y.M.C.A.,” which is viewed as a gay anthem.
The group faced similar backlash from social media users, some of whom called them “traitors.”
“We know this won’t make some of you happy to hear however we believe that music is to be performed without regard to politics,” the band said in a post on its Facebook page Monday. “Our song Y.M.C.A. is a global anthem that hopefully helps bring the country together after a tumultuous and divided campaign where our preferred candidate lost.”
Singer Billy Ray Cyrus is also on Trump’s run-of-show after vocally supporting him this summer.
By contrast, his daughter, fellow singer Miley Cyrus, is a vocal critic of the president-elect, referring to him as a “f---ing nightmare” back in 2016.
But other celebrities have warmed to Trump as he heads to 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. for the second time.
Actor Dennis Quaid gave Trump his wholehearted endorsement in 2024 after distancing himself from him in 2020. Actor Mel Gibson openly backs Trump after criticizing both presidential nominees in 2016. NASCAR driver Danica Patrick announced last fall that she voted for the first time, proudly declaring she cast her ballot for Trump.
“Curb Your Enthusiasm” star Cheryl Hines was once a vocal Trump critic but has since backed off from her critiques. Her husband, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., endorsed Trump after ending his own 2024 presidential election bid and is now his Health and Human Services (HHS) secretary nominee.
Even the Golden Globes barely poked fun at the president-elect, a notable shift from the 2017 award show that centered around Trump’s first election and former President Obama’s lame duck period.
But any thaw could be short-lived. If there was ever a chance for Trump opponents to soften their hardened distaste — or even stand alongside him on stage — the most innocuous time to do so is on Inauguration Day, which is more about pomp, circumstance and a ceremonial transition of power.
Most of Hollywood’s A-list stars remain staunchly opposed to Trump and his movement. And he is famously known for igniting chaos in American politics and creating controversy while in office. He has pledged to enact mass deportations of immigrants and to end birthright citizenship in the U.S. when he retakes office, policies that would be explosively controversial if carried out.
Penney described this current honeymoon period of a new administration as a “unity wave.” He predicted that once the dust settles after a few months, the hyper partisanship will return and the truce will “deteriorate really quickly.”