Controversy continues to rain down on Donald Trump's parade. As the president-elect gears up to take his oath into office on Friday, Jan. 20, more drama unfolds. The chair of the inauguration committee, Tom Barrack Jr., revealed that Trump supporter, Kanye West, was reportedly not invited to perform at the inauguration, suggesting in an interview with CNN that Kanye and his actions weren't "traditionally American" enough to grace the stage. This may be unexpected news to some, especially following Kanye's highly publicized show of support for Trump last month.
With the committee seemingly having such a tough time securing major talent for the big day, it would appear that asking Kanye would be a no-brainer, right? I mean, it's been rumored that performers have been canceling on the event left and right, for fear of backlash, leaving Toby Keith, 3 Doors Down, and Jackie Evancho as the only notable performers signed on to the shindig, thus far.
However, it's not that lack of invite that surprises me. Instead, it's Barrack's overtly lame and backhanded excuse for not extending the invite to West that's most baffling. He explained his reasoning to CNN's Erin Burnett,
"We haven't asked him. He considers himself a friend of the president-elect, but it's not the venue. The venue we have for entertainment is filled out, it's perfect, it's going to be typically and traditionally American, and Kanye is a great guy but we just haven't asked him to perform. We move on with our agenda."
Yep, you heard that correctly. He basically said Kanye is not "typically and traditionally American" enough to perform at the inauguration. So, what gives? I mean, Kanye was born in Atlanta, and raised in Chicago, so that for sure makes him American. He's practically a hip-hop megastar, and hip-hop is most certainly American, right? So, I'm just confused — confused to hear that Yeezy's not considered "traditionally American" enough, especially when we're speaking about the inauguration of a man whose mother and all four grandparents were born in Europe, yet that still makes him American enough to be the next president of the United States.
But, hey, who needs my opinion... I'll just be sitting here waiting on 'Ye's response.
