Things have heated up in the entertainment world with the start of the Sundance Film Festival and much of Hollywood focused on the presidential inauguration of Donald Trump. Just around the corner is the announcement, coming Tuesday, of the Academy Award nominations. Here’s what’s new and interesting in entertainment and the arts:
With the sound of helicopters hovering overhead, the country singer Lee Greenwood took a phone call on Thursday while standing backstage at the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D. C.
Greenwood, who is best known for his patriotic anthem “God Bless the U. S. A.,” was waiting in the wings for his afternoon gig an hour later as part of President-elect Donald Trump’s inaugural concert.
If Greenwood didn’t sound nervous, it’s because he’d done this a few times before. The veteran hitmaker, who was born in Los Angeles and raised in Sacramento, has now performed during the inaugurations of every Republican president since Ronald Reagan.
“It never gets old,” he said of playing his flagship song during historic occasions.
“Since I wrote it in 1983, there have been so many moments when the song has assisted not just me, but the country,” he said, estimating it took him a half hour to write. “The first Gulf War, the disaster with Katrina, the Sept. 11 attack on America, and each time ‘God Bless the U. S. A.’ has served a role. “
As Greenwood spoke, a bugle playing “Taps” echoed in the background.
Greenwood added that on Wednesday he met Trump backstage at the National Portrait Gallery during a fundraising dinner in honor of Vice President-elect Mike Pence. The singer and the soon-to-be president chatted for a second.
“He said he was thankful that we were there,” Greenwood recalled, “and told me that he likes my music.”
Greenwood and his wife took a photo with Trump, who, Greenwood added, “was also taking pictures with a lot of the military who were there, and I commended him for that. I think it’s just terrific that the president would immediately embrace the military for their sacrifices.”
