Folk singer Kristy Lee has stood by her decision to cancel a scheduled performance at the Kennedy Center.
“I’m a gay singer-songwriter from the South, and I have to make sure the platforms I stand on respect where I come from—and the humanity I believe in. Right now, this administration doesn’t reflect that kind of empathy," she told AL.com in an interview published Sunday about her decision.
The 45-year-old Alabama native was originally set to perform on Jan. 14 this year, but opted out in December after Trump renamed the cultural center for himself.
Asked about potential legal consequences considering the Center’s threats toward Chuck Redd after his cancellation at the Center, Lee explained that she was not concerned about punishment from the institution.
“No. I haven’t been threatened with legal action. And I’ll say this plainly: my decision wasn’t about fear of consequences. It was about conscience. I was trying to stay in tune with myself and protect my own peace,” she told the outlet.
Lee also mentioned the “real threats” she’s faced as an openly gay performer, saying that the “tension has grown sharper over the last decade.”
She added: “It reflects a broader climate where cruelty has been normalized and empathy has been worn thin. When leadership models bullying toward marginalized people, it seeps into everyday life and disconnects us from one another.”
Lee announced her decision to cancel her show on Facebook, sharing a statement on Dec. 23.
In part, she wrote to her fans: “I won’t lie to you, canceling shows hurts. This is how I keep the lights on. But losing my integrity would cost me more than any paycheck.
“When American history starts getting treated like something you can ban, erase, rename, or rebrand for somebody else’s ego, I can’t stand on that stage and sleep right at night.”
The Kennedy Center did not immediately respond to the Daily Beast’s request for comment.
Lee isn’t the only artist to have pulled out of scheduled performances. Redd was threatened with a $1 million lawsuit after his cancellation led to the nixing of the traditional Christmas Eve show.
Lee and Redd are joined by numerous other performers, including singer Sonia De Los Santos, Wicked composer Stephen Schwartz, jazz saxophonist Billy Harper, and the Broadway show Hamilton. On Friday, the Washington National Opera announced that it would be leaving the Kennedy Center after more than 50 years of residency.
In response to the famed opera’s departure, Kennedy Center president Richard Grenell posted an extended statement on X, trying to spin the development as the center made. “We have spent millions of dollars to support the Washington Opera’s exclusivity, and yet they were still millions of dollars in the hole - and getting worse,” Grenell wrote.
To other performers who will no longer work with the Kennedy Center, Grenell derided them as caving “to the woke mob.”
