Ben Folds has spoken before Congress and hit out at Donald’s Trump’s overhaul of the Kennedy Center, saying: “When you politicise art, you’ve got propaganda”.
The singer-songwriter served as the artistic advisor for the cultural institution’s National Symphony Orchestra for nearly a decade, before stepping down in 2025 around the time that Trump was appointed chairman.
The Washington D.C. venue became the centre of a political storm when its Trump-appointed board then voted to rename it the “Trump-Kennedy Center”. That move was later reversed, however, when a judge ruled that it could not be renamed without Congressional approval.
Last month, Folds wrote an open letter, claiming that the Kennedy Center had been “suffocated by the financial turmoil that resulted from the presidential takeover”, and urging people to share support as the institution battled through the difficult period.
Now, he has spoken at a Congressional forum and criticised Trump’s takeover as being detrimental and an attempt to “further a political agenda”.
Speaking to congress yesterday (Tuesday July 21), Folds said that the arts centre has become a “hyper-politicised environment” since the POTUS was made chairman.
“I never heard politics discussed in any meetings or gatherings at the centre,” he said, recalling his tenure before Trump got involved. “Everyone involved, including the Trump board, knew we were there to create, educate and showcase art for all Americans, not to further a political agenda.”
He added: “I think most of us understand that when you politicise art, you’ve got propaganda.”
Other negative impacts of the takeover, he added, were that he could no longer “trust” that artists booked to play at the centre “would be safe from retribution” if they said something on stage that could be critical of the Trump administration.
He also highlighted that since Trump became chairman, it has become apparent that artists can no longer accept or decline invitations to perform at the venue without it being interpreted as a political statement.
An example he gave of the changes was that of singer Yasmin Levy, who was allegedly booed by hecklers during her concert at the Kennedy Center in September, after she criticised the board.
“The takeover hobbled the Kennedy Center, broke its once-proven successful business model and disrespected its original core mission,” Folds argued.
At the forum yesterday, the takeover of the Kennedy Center was just one of the topics covered as an example of “Trump’s vanity projects” which have allegedly “wasted hundreds of millions of your hard-earned tax dollars” (via Billboard).
Crowd applauds at Senate hearing room for Rep Joyce Beatty (D-OH) for her legal challenge against Trump’s takeover of Kennedy Center.. which stripped off Trump’s name
Packed house here, by the way, for unofficial hearing on Trump vanity projects pic.twitter.com/gZQg31tQIZ
— Scott MacFarlane (@MacFarlaneNews) July 21, 2026
Other examples raised included his renovations on the White House, the construction of a new arch sculpture in Washington D.C. and more.
Multiple artists pulled out of performing at the Kennedy Center when Trump’s name was added, including jazz musician Chuck Redd – who faced a demand of $1million (£740,000) in damages from the venue’s president – as well as veteran jazz septet The Cookers, and New York dance troupe Doug Varone and Dancers.
Others, including Wicked composer Stephen Schwartz, joined a boycott of the arts institution too. “It no longer represents the apolitical place for free artistic expression it was founded to be,” Schwartz said at the time. “There’s no way I would set foot in it now.”
In May, after the judge ordered the removal of Trump’s name from the building, the POTUS then hit out at the ruling and accused it as being a move from “the radical left” who “would rather see it die than have President Trump transform it into something that everyone could be proud of”.
Last month, it was confirmed that all references to Trump had been removed from the Kennedy Center following the court ruling.
