After over two decades at the Kennedy Center, the annual “Let Freedom Ring” concert commemorating Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. will relocate to a new venue.
Since its inception in 2003, this poignant event has featured renowned artists such as Gladys Knight and the late Aretha Franklin, alongside local Washington, D.C. church performers, to honor the legacy of the civil rights leader who was tragically assassinated in 1968.
This year, as rapper Common steps into the role of host, the sold-out celebration will take place at the Howard Theater in Washington, D.C. Georgetown University, the event’s sponsor, cited financial considerations as the reason for the change, according to NPR.
Marc Bamuthi, former artistic director for social impact at the Kennedy Center, expressed that holding the concert at the venue, now renamed the Donald J. Trump and The John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts, would be inappropriate this year.
“Celebrating someone who advocated for justice and equity, when the administration’s official stance opposes those ideals, would be hypocritical,” Bamuthi commented to NPR.
He departed from his position in May, shortly after President Trump’s chosen team assumed leadership of the prestigious cultural institution.
The center announced Tuesday that an event featuring Missionary Kings of Harmony of The United House of Prayer for All People’s Anacostia congregation would take the stage Monday when the nation formally observes King’s birthday.
Numerous artists have opted not to perform at the Kennedy Center since the Trump administration returned to power in January. Traditional Christmas Eve and New Years Eve acts angered Trump-appointed administrators by canceling holiday shows after Trump’s name was added to the center’s facade.
