A worker stands next to the newly added lettering for U.S. President Donald Trump's name at the facade of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, in Washington, D.C., U.S., December 19, 2025. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque
Donald Trump's takeover and illegal attempted rebranding of the Kennedy Center continues to drive away artists from performing there, leading his designated head of the arts and culture center to lash out against the supposed "woke mob" behind it all, per a Wednesday report from the Daily Beast.
On Tuesday, Béla Fleck, a 17-time Grammy winner and Hall of Fame bluegrass musician, became the latest artist to jump ship, pulling his involvement in the Kennedy Center's upcoming "American Mosaic" show in February. Fleck cited the recent changes at the center, which have made playing there too "charged and political" for him to go along with.
"I have withdrawn from my upcoming performance with the [National Symphony Orchestra] at The Kennedy Center," Fleck wrote in a post shared across various social media platforms. "Performing there has become charged and political, at an institution where the focus should be on the music. I look forward to playing with the NSO another time in the future when we can together share and celebrate art."
Taking to his official X account, Richard Grennell -- a former diplomat during Trump's first term, recently appointed as executive director of the Kennedy Center -- lashed out at Fleck's decision, claiming that he and other artists were being pressured by a supposed "woke mob" to "only play for Democrats."
"You just made it political and caved to the woke mob who wants you to perform for only Lefties," Grennell posted. "This mob pressuring you will never be happy until you only play for Democrats. The Trump Kennedy Center believes all people are welcome - Democrats and Republicans and people uninterested in politics. We want performers who aren’t political - who simply love entertaining everyone regardless of who they voted for."
Near the start of his second term, Trump ousted the entire presidentially-appointed segment of the Kennedy Center board of trustees and filled it with new loyalist appointees. This came as the president worked to shape the vaunted cultural center in his own image, and as part of a broader mass takeover of many other institutions in Washington D.C.
Last month, Trump's board of loyalists voted to add his name to the Kennedy Center, a move that accelerated the trend of artists pulling out of performances at the center due to his influence. The change was not legally binding, as only Congress can officially rename the center.