According to nme.com, the Village People joined Donald Trump on stage at the latter’s inauguration rally to perform “Y.M.C.A.” The band made their appearance as part of the lineup for the Republican party leader’s second inauguration at the U.S. Capitol January 20. The event, which also featured Carrie Underwood, Kid Rock, Billy Ray Cyrus and Nelly on the bill, the American disco group took to the stage in their signature attire to perform a live rendition of the smash hit song.
As the Village People took the stage, they shook Trump’s hand before heading over to their microphones and breaking out the famous choreography. During the performance, Trump was seen dancing and singing along to some of the lyrics. The performance from the group comes after a tumultuous relationship with the politician, particularly over the use of the 1978 song in his rallies over the years.
Leading up to his inauguration, Trump continually used two Village People songs during his election campaigns. Both in 2020 and again last year with the songs “Macho Man” and “Y.M.C.A.”
While explaining his change of heart at the time, Victor Willis wrote: “I said to my wife one day, ‘Hey, Trump seems to genuinely like ‘Y.M.C.A.’ and he’s having a lot of fun with it’. As such, I simply didn’t have the heart to prevent his continued use of my song in the face of so many artists withdrawing his use of their material. So I told my wife to inform BMI to not withdraw the Trump campaign political use license.”
