Kennedy Center President Richard Grenell has threatened legal action against jazz musician Chuck Redd after Redd canceled his scheduled Christmas eve concert over President Donald Trump’s appointed board’s decision to rename the venue after himself.
In a letter obtained by The Associated Press on Friday, Grenell likened Redd’s decision to “the sad bullying tactics” by some on the left.
“Your decision to withdraw at the last moment — explicitly in response to the Center’s recent renaming, which honors President Trump’s extraordinary efforts to save this national treasure — is classic intolerance and very costly to a non-profit Arts institution,” Grenell wrote. “Regrettably, your action surrenders to the sad bullying tactics employed by certain elements on the left, who have sought to intimidate artists into boycotting performances at our national cultural center.”
Grenell said that the letter served as “official notice” that “we will seek $1 million in damages,” from Redd, calling his nixing of the concert a “political stunt.”
Redd did not immediately respond to Rolling Stone’s request for comment.
For more than two decades, the Kennedy Center — known formally as the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts before all the recent changes — has hosted the Christmas eve Jazz Jam. Redd has led the event since 2006.
A week prior to the scheduled Christmas eve performance, the center’s board of trustees, who were handpicked by Trump, voted unanimously to rename the once venerable institution the Trump Kennedy Center, a controversial (and possibly illegal) decision.
“When I saw the name change on the Kennedy Center website and then hours later on the building, I chose to cancel our concert,” Redd told the AP on Dec. 24.
Since Trump’s self-appointment as Kennedy Center chairman in early February, at least 26 performances have been canceled, including 15 by the scheduled acts themselves. Issa Rae canceled her Feb. 14 show, citing “an infringement on the values of an institution that has faithfully celebrated artists of all backgrounds through all mediums.” On Feb. 13, Low Cut Connie, the Philadelphia rock and soul band fronted by Adam Weiner, canceled their March 19 concert.
That following month, Guster protested the changes at the Kennedy Center — which included the cancellation of performances of the LGBTQ+ musical Finn — by having the Finn cast join the band onstage during their concert at the venue.
The fallout from the changes at the once venerable institution has also affected the schedule for next year. Lin-Manuel Miranda and Jefferey Seller were planning to bring Hamilton to the Kennedy Center in 2026, but canceled the run, saying, “The Kennedy Center was not created in this spirit, and we’re not going to be a part of it while it is the Trump Kennedy Center. We’re just not going to be part of it.”
