The Kennedy Center will be renamed to honour Donald Trump after his work to save the building.
The John F. Kennedy Center For The Performing Arts, better known as the Kennedy Center, is set to be renamed the Donald J. Trump And The John F. Kennedy Memorial Center For The Performing Arts.
The news was announced yesterday (December 18) by White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt on X/Twitter. “I have just been informed that the highly respected Board of the Kennedy Center, some of the most successful people from all parts of the world, have just voted unanimously to rename the Kennedy Center to the Trump-Kennedy Center, because of the unbelievable work President Trump has done over the last year in saving the building,” she wrote.
“Not only from the standpoint of its reconstruction, but also financially, and its reputation,” her statement continued. Congratulations to President Donald J. Trump, and likewise, congratulations to President Kennedy, because this will be a truly great team long into the future! The building will no doubt attain new levels of success and grandeur.”
I have just been informed that the highly respected Board of the Kennedy Center, some of the most successful people from all parts of the world, have just voted unanimously to rename the Kennedy Center to the Trump-Kennedy Center, because of the unbelievable work President Trump…
— Karoline Leavitt (@PressSec) December 18, 2025
Back in February, the US President was elected as chairman of the centre. He announced his plans to change the venue’s programming and remove several members of the board of trustees. He also told reporters at the time he would put an end to what he viewed as “woke” productions taking place.
The board that voted on the name change is the same board that Trump appointed. Artistic adviser to the National Symphony Orchestra, Ben Folds, resigned amid Trump taking charge of the performing arts centre, saying the changes were “not for me”, and chairman David Rubenstein was among those removed from the board of trustees as he did “not share our Vision for a Golden Age in Arts and Culture” (via Rolling Stone).
Earlier this year it was reported that the producers of the musical Hamilton had cancelled their production at The Kennedy Center, due to President Donald Trump taking control of the venue.
In June, Trump was greeted by drag queens and booed during his first visit to the Kennedy Center since installing himself as chairman of the centre. News of the name change comes weeks after Trump presented this year’s Kennedy Center honourees with their medals.
The list of honorees selected by the Trump administration this year included KISS, Sylvester Stallone, Gloria Gaynor, country star George Strait and stage and sitcom actor Michael Crawford.
The prize is awarded to figures in the performing arts for their lifetime of contributions to American culture.
In 2021, KISS frontman Paul Stanley described Trump as “abhorrent” and “a true danger to our democracy”, but back in August, the singer spoke of his pride in accepting the honour.
Bassist Gene Simmons also responded to the honour, writing: “KISS is the embodiment of the American dream. We are deeply honored to receive the Kennedy Center Honor”.
Drummer Peter Criss added: “I feel so blessed. This is the greatest honour of our career”. Founding guitarist Ace Frehley also described it as “a dream come true that I never thought would materialize”.
Unlike Stanley, Frehley has been supportive of Trump in the past. “I will say I’m a Trump supporter,” he said in 2020. “All the politicians have had skeletons in the closet. But I think Trump is the strongest leader that we’ve got on the table.”
Stanley has also criticised members of the Republican Party in the past for not speaking out against Trump after he refused to accept defeat in the 2020 presidential election. “Their silence is a choice and not sharing their opinion is a coward’s way out,” he said. “It feeds the mistrust that eats at the core of this country I love”.
Tom Cruise reportedly turned down an award at this year’s ceremony due to “scheduling conflicts”, according to The Washington Post, which cited current and former Kennedy Center employees on the condition of anonymity.
The Mission: Impossible star is yet to publicly comment on the report.