Rock band KISS, country singer George Strait, disco star Gloria Gaynor, actor Sylvester Stallone, and actor-singer Michael Crawford have been named as the first batch of Kennedy Center Honors nominees under the leadership of U.S. President Donald Trump.
“I want to congratulate all the nominees. They’re unbelievable people, and we’re going to have a tremendous day in December,” Trump said in a news conference. “I turned down plenty. This is very different than it used to be; these are great people."
As the center's chairman, Trump made the announcement today, adding that he will also serve as the host of the awards program, which will air on CBS in December. It marks the first time a president has ever hosted the show.
While members of KISS have not responded to the nomination, they previously turned down an opportunity to perform at Trump's 2017 inauguration. At the time, bassist Gene Simmons told The Daily Beast, “In this polarizing era, it’s not a good idea.”
Simmons appeared with Trump on the first season of The Celebrity Apprentice, in which he was fired. He has both shown support and criticism for the current president over the years, blaming a lot of the polarization in the U.S. on Trump.
In 2022 Simmons told SPIN, “Once upon a time, you were embarrassed to be publicly racist and out there with conspiracy theories. Now it’s all out in the open because he allowed it…"
KISS guitarist Paul Stanley has also been critical of Trump over his part in the January 6 insurrection and his insistence on calling the 2020 election rigged. “REGARDLESS of who you support, it is incendiary & abhorrent for ANY candidate to say ‘If I lose, the election is rigged,'” Stanley posted on Twitter.
Watch the announcement below.