The Kennedy Center says it is planning to take legal action after jazz musician Chuck Redd canceled an annual Christmas concert. Redd retired after President Trump’s name appeared on the building.
/Roberto Severi
hide title
toggle title
/Roberto Severi
The Kennedy Center says it plans to file a $1 million lawsuit against jazz artist Chuck Redd after the musician canceled his annual Christmas Eve performance. The Associated Press first reported that Redd pulled out of the show days after President Trump’s name was added to the exterior of the performing arts center in Washington, DC.
In an email to NPR on Saturday, Kennedy Center spokesperson Roma Daravi said Redd’s decision does a disservice to the doctor.
“Any artist who cancels his show at the Trump Kennedy Center over political differences is unbrave and unprincipled: selfish, intolerant, and has failed to fulfill the basic duty of a public entertainer: to perform for all people,” he said.
Redd, an international drum and vibraphone player, hosted the center’s Christmas Jazz Jam for many years. NPR’s messages to Redd were not returned Saturday morning.
“When I saw the name change on the Kennedy Center website and hours later in the building, I decided to cancel our concert,” he told the AP.
Kennedy Center President Richard Grenell sent a scathing letter to Redd on Friday, criticizing him and calling the cancellation a political stunt. The center shared the letter with NPR.
“Unfortunately, their action surrenders to the sad intimidation tactics employed by certain elements of the left, who have attempted to intimidate artists into boycotting performances at our national cultural center,” it reads.
In a post about
Several artists have pulled out of performances and cut ties with the Kennedy Center since Trump replaced the board and was elected president. In March, hamilton canceled its 2026 performance at the Kennedy Center. Actress and producer Issa Rae also canceled her appearance. Folk musician Rhiannon Giddens moved her concert to another location in the city.
Trump’s name was added to the Kennedy Center building last week, after the Board of Trustees voted to rename it. The iconic lettering on the exterior now reads “The Donald J. Trump and John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts.”
The name change has sparked protests from Democratic politicians. Ohio Rep. Joyce Beatty, an ex officio member of the Kennedy Center Board, filed a lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia on Monday. Beatty again changed the name of the monument in honor of President John F. Kennedy required by an act of Congress. She is asking the court to declare the board’s vote void.
According to an online Kennedy Center biography, Redd has been involved with The Smithsonian for more than two decades, serving as an artist-in-residence at The Smithsonian Jazz Café from 2004 to 2008. The Kennedy Center is part of the Smithsonian Institution.
“Art is a shared cultural experience meant to unite, not exclude,” Daravi’s statement said. “The Trump Kennedy Center is a truly bipartisan institution that welcomes artists and patrons of all backgrounds; great art transcends politics, and America’s cultural center remains committed to presenting popular programming that inspires and resonates with all audiences.”
The Kennedy Center says it will file the lawsuit against Redd after the holidays.