President Trump might be Elton John’s biggest fan. So much so, that the then-president elect told people the British singer would perform at his inauguration—despite John not having agreed to do so, The New York Times reports. “Thank you so much for the extremely kind invitation to play at your inauguration,” the musician reportedly wrote in response to the official invitation. “I have given it at lot of thought, and as a British National I don’t feel that it’s appropriate for me to play at the inauguration of an American President. Please accept my apologies.” John has said he wants to separate himself from Trump’s politics, but also wrote in his response that he would be “delighted” to play at a White House State Dinner for the U.K. “if the opportunity arises.”
Trump’s fondness for the “Tiny Dancer” singer reportedly did not sour after he rejected the inauguration invitation. Instead, every time the president has held a rally at a stadium that John holds the record for attendance in, Trump reportedly becomes laser-focused on beating those crowd numbers, according to sources cited by the Times. Last month, Trump bested John’s ticket sales at the same venue in New Hampshire, and took to Twitter to share his victory. “Great news! Tonight, we broke the all-time attendance record previously held by Elton John at #SNHUArena in Manchester, New Hampshire!” Trump tweeted. The president is then said to have repeatedly asked his aides if the new record was being picked up in the news. It was not.
