Trump to host Kennedy Center Honors and says he ‘turned down plenty’ of ‘too woke’ nominees

Donald Trump has announced that he will host the Kennedy Center Honors 2025, adding that he “turned down plenty” of “too woke” nominees. It marks the first list of Kennedy Center Honorees since the president took over as chair of the performing arts centre.

On a Wednesday (13 August) press conference at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, Trump announced the list of the honourees for the Kennedy Center Honors 2025. 

Although previous honourees were selected by a committee, Trump said he was “about 98 per cent involved” in the decision making process, and “turned down plenty” of potential nominees. 

“They were too woke. I had a couple of wokesters,” he said at the conference, where he revealed each nominee. He also suggested that he had to be talked into hosting the upcoming event. 

“I’ve been asked to host. I said, ‘I’m the president of the United States. Are you fools asking me to do that.’ ‘Sir, you’ll get much higher ratings.’ I said, ‘I don’t care. I’m the president of the United States. I won’t do it.’ 

“They said, ‘Please.’ And then [chief of staff] Susie Wiles said, ‘Sir. I would like you to host.’ I said, ‘OK, I’ll do it.’

“They’ll [his critics] say he insisted [on hosting]. I did not insist, but I think it will be quite successful, actually. It’s been a long time. I used to host The Apprentice finales and we did rather well with that. So, I think we’re going to do very well.”

Deadline reported that by announcing the nominees, Trump has taken on “the role of producer/showman, elevating the attention to the show”. Launched in 1978, the Kenendy Center Honors airs annually on CBS, with the upcoming ceremony marking the first time a president has hosted the show. 

Being honoured at this year’s awards is country singer-songwriter George Strait, The Phantom of the Opera’s Michael Crawford, rock band KISS, Rocky actor and long-term Trump supporter Sylvester Stallone, and “I Will Survive” singer Gloria Gaynor. 

Ironically, the singer’s 1978 hit has long been hailed a gay anthem. Though, she has publicly said she wants to “lead gays to Christ” and rejected the idea that she’s a feminist. 

Gene Simmons, KISS’s co-lead singer, said via a statement that the band “is the embodiment of the American dream. We are deeply honoured to receive the Kennedy Center Honor.”

It comes after Trump was voted chair of the performing arts centre, which has been moved to be named after Melania Trump, after appointing himself in the position. After he vowed to fire members of the board of trustees, the board is now made up entirely of Trump appointees, as per the Guardian. 

Trump also removed the centre’s longtime president Deborah F. Rutter and its chairman, David M. Rubenstein. Meanwhile, other high-profile board members also resigned in the wake of Trump’s changes, including Bridgerton executive producer Shonda Rhimes.

Trump has expressed a desire to overhaul what he calls “anti-American propaganda” programming at the centre. Several LGBTQ+ performance groups have faced show cancellations there, including the International Pride Orchestra and the Gay Men’s Chorus of Washington, DC. 

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