As President Barack Obama’s inaugural weekend quickly approaches, more entertainers are signing up to join the celebrations and events around Washington D.C.
Beyonce, Kelly Clarkson and James Taylor are set to perform during the Inauguration ceremony on the West Front of the Capitol on January 21.
The AP reports that Katy Perry, Smokey Robinson, Usher, Alicia Keys, Brad Paisley and Fun are set to sing at Obama’s inaugural galas Jan. 21 and a children’s concert on Jan. 19. Performers including Marc Anthony, Stevie Wonder, John Legend and the cast of “Glee” have also signed on to perform at various galas that weekend.
City officials estimate a drop in attendance and predict an the crowd at the inaugural ceremony to be somewhere between 600,000 and 800,000 – down from 1.8 million in 2009.
During Obama’s first inauguration in 2009, celebrities flocked to the celebrations. Speakers and performers included Jack Black, Steve Carell, Rosario Dawson, Jamie Foxx, Tom Hanks, Ashley Judd, Martin Luther King III, Queen Latifah, Laura Linney, George Lopez, Kal Penn, Marisa Tomei, Denzel Washington, Forest Whitaker, Tiger Woods, Master Sgt. Caleb Green, Bruce Springsteen, Mary J. Blige, Jon Bon Jovi with Bettye Lavette, James Taylor, John Legend, Jennifer Nettle, John Mellencamp, Josh Groban and Heather Headley, Will.i.am with Herbie Hancock and Sheryl Crow, Renee Fleming, Garth Brooks, Shakira, Adam Levine, Stevie Wonder with Usher and Shakira, U2, Pete Seeger, Beyonce and Aretha Franklin.
Beyonce and Jay-Z at the 2009 Inauguration Photo: Reuters
Other celebrities simply attended the ceremony and/or performed at the dozens of galas held around Washington D.C., including Faith Hill, Oprah Winfrey, Jay-Z, Steven Spielberg, Kate Capshaw, Dustin Hoffman, Magic Johnson, Mohammad Ali, Samuel L. Jackson, Arnold Schwarznegger,Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs, Sharon Stone, Sting, Elvis Costello, Susan Sarandon, Tim Robbins, Spike Lee, Anne Hathaway, Halle Berry, John Cusack, Leonardo DiCaprio, Demi Moore, Jackson Browne, Cyndi Lauper, Melissa Etheridge, Mariah Carey and Robert DeNiro.
Steven Spielberg and wife Kate Capshaw at the 2009 Inauguration. Photo: Getty Images
Beyonce famously belted out Etta James’s ‘At Last’ at the Neighborhood Ball. Watch the performances below.
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