Nelly, Snoop Dogg, and Carrie Underwood have all come under fire for agreeing to perform at Donald Trump’s inauguration and associated parties.
Rapper Nelly faced criticism for performing at the First Liberty Ball, but he justified himself by saying that he is performing for the "honour".
He said on the Willie D Live podcast: “I didn’t know that I had to agree with your political choices. If you follow what I do, this shouldn’t even be an argument. He is the president. He won.
“I’m not doing this for money. I’m doing this because it’s an honour. I respect the office. It don’t matter who is in office.”
Meanwhile, Snoop Dogg received severe backlash after being caught on camera singing at the inaugural Crypto Ball on Friday in honour of Trump's inauguration. With tickets ranging from $2,500 to $5,000 each (around £2,000 to £4,000), the rapper performed at the Andrew W. Mellon Auditorium in Washington, DC.
Underwood, who is set to sing America the Beautiful, at the inauguration on Monday night was also criticised for her decision to perform.
Billy Ray Cyrus, Kid Rock, the Village People and Jason Aldean will all be performing on Monday night.
Here are some of those who have said they will attend Mr Trump’s swearing-in and some who will not be coming.
Who is attending Donald Trump’s inauguration?
Who has said they will attend
While Mr Trump has not been universally popular among previous heads of the state, his swearing-in will be witnessed by his predecessors Barack Obama, George Bush Jr and Bill Clinton.
Mr Bush and Mr Clinton, who were remarkably both born in the same year as Mr Trump, have a chequered history with the president elect. Mr Trump has, himself, changed his political allegiance five times before becoming a fully fledged Republican in 2012.
Hillary Clinton will also attend, having stood against Mr Trump in 2016, while his 2024 rival Kamala Harris will also witness him taking the oath.
While Ms Harris will attend the inauguration, she is breaking with convention by not hosting her incoming counterpart, JD Vance, for a reception.
The inauguration is set to see the top tech bros turn out to salute the new president, with Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos and Mark Zuckerberg all set to attend.
The three executives will be seated together on the platform with Trump's Cabinet nominees and other dignitaries.
Mr Zuckerberg has recently pledged to stop Meta’s fact-checking services in an apparent move to placate Mr Trump, while Mr Musk is a born-again effervescent cheerleader. Both tech execs are said to be rivals and are now fighting for the approval of Mr Trump, having seemed to have abandoned their plans to have a literal fight.
Another tech chief set to attend is TikTok boss Shou Chew, who has received an invitation despite Mr Trump’s efforts to block the app in 2020.
Country singers Billy Ray Cyrus and Carrie Underwood are set to perform, as well as Kid Rock, Village People and Jason Aldean.
All of Mr Trump’s immediate family will be present.
• Follow The Standard’s live coverage of Donald Trump’s inauguration
Who will not be attending?
One notable absentee will be Michelle Obama, who has confirmed she will not be attending with her ex-president husband, Barack.
The former first lady also did not attend the funeral of Jimmy Carter but has not provided a reason for her absences.
While Mr Obama, Mr Bush, and Mr Clinton will attend the ceremony, they are reportedly not set to be at the president’s lunch.
Sir Keir Starmer will not be in Washington DC, as per tradition – no British prime minister has ever attended an inauguration ceremony.
It is not customary for other world leaders to be present, but Mr Trump has broken with tradition by adding names of far-right leaders from around the world to be in attendance.
This list includes the name of Reform UK leader Nigel Farage. But others not invited include EU commission president Ursula von der Leyen.
