WASHINGTON — When it comes to the arts, there’s no bigger highlight in the nation’s capital.
On Sunday night, the 40th annual Kennedy Center Honors saluted its 2017 class of versatile artists: Gloria Estefan, Norman Lear, LL Cool J, Carmen de Lavallade and Lionel Richie.
“This year is a really unique group of individuals,” Kennedy Center President Deborah Rutter told WTOP. “We have the youngest and oldest honoree with LL Cool J and Norman Lear. But what’s really unique about this, which was unknown in advance, is they’re all great friends.”
Of course, Rutter had to address the elephant (not) in the room: President Donald Trump.
“It’s disappointing to us because this is the moment in the year, year after year, when the President of the United States … comes to pay respect to artists of all art forms,” Rutter said. “On the other hand, in this case, I really respect the White House decision that they would not participate, just because they didn’t want to be a distraction from the honorees themselves.”
The night kicked off with a tribute to Latin-American pop sensation Gloria Estefan, including the cast of Broadway’s “Get On Your Feet,” Chaka Khan, Jon Secada, Becky G and Miami Sound Machine. Still, it was her daughter Emily who stole the show with a piano cover of “Reach.”
“I have a lot of tissues because I know I’m going to cry,” Estefan rightly predicted on the red carpet. “We have a real camaraderie with this class of 2017. We’re thrilled it’s the 40th year celebrating this amazing award. I’m beyond honored and blessed to be in that company.”
Next came a star-studded salute to TV producer Norman Lear, including Rob Reiner, Dave Chappelle, Rita Moreno, Anthony Anderson and Rachel Bloom. The nostalgia wafted through the Opera House as the actual sets from “All in the Family,” “The Jeffersons,” “Good Times,” “Maude” and “One Day at a Time” were recreated using furniture donated by the Smithsonian.
“There was a trace of my dad in Archie [Bunker],” Lear said on the red carpet, echoing a story he told WTOP back in 2015 about his father actually calling him “Meathead” (listen here).
The next honoree marked a truly historic moment, as LL Cool J became both the youngest honoree and the first-ever hip-hop artist to receive the prestigious honor.
“It feels good to be the [first] one,” LL Cool J told WTOP. “I think there are many people that were worthy, I’m just glad that I’m the one they chose! … Hip-hop is very high art, when you look at some of the things [Dr.] Dre does musically, some of the stuff [Q]-Tip does sonically with the Tribe albums, when you think about Questlove and The Roots and the musicality.”
A number of hip-hop stars hit the stage to pay tribute, including Queen Latifah, Busta Rhymes, MC Lyte, Questlove, DJ Z-Trip and DMC of the legendary group Run DMC.
“It’s so deserving that it’s him to be the first,” Busta Rhymes told WTOP. “That man has always obligated his entire life to properly representing the culture, properly upholding the moral fiber and integrity of the culture, displaying a skill set as a lyricist that is second to none. He embraces any challenge. … He is the symbol of greatness in our eyes. … He set a standard.”
DMC of Run DMC thinks it will open the door to other hip-hop honorees in the future.
“[Run DMC] is coming soon, then Flava [Flav] and Chuck [D], then Rakim,” DMC told WTOP. “[To quote ‘King of Rock’]: ‘Crash through walls, come through floors, bust through ceilings and knock down doors.’ When Steven Tyler knocked down that wall, that didn’t just happen in the [‘Walk This Way’] video, it happened in the world. That’s why we’re here tonight.”
After a brief intermission, it was time to honor dancer/choreographer Carmen de Lavallade, as Meryl Streep introduced numbers by Misty Copeland and other world-class dancers.
“Know yourself, be strong, know your craft and never give up,” de Lavallade told WTOP.
The night ended with a salute to Lionel Richie, including Quincy Jones, Kenny Rogers, Luke Bryan, Leona Lewis and Stevie Wonder, who performed “Hello” and “Easy” at the piano.
“It’s about four hours worth of hits,” Richie told WTOP. “We could play all of the Commodores songs alone as just one group — and then we get to the solo stuff. … It’s different from any other award shows. I’m thinking, ‘Am I going to win?’ No, I’ve [already] won. ‘Am I going to sing?’ No. ‘Am I going to say anything tonight?’ No. So it feels kind of odd that I’m not going to do anything other than sit there and enjoy it, but other than that, boy am I glad to be here.”
While the honorees laughed, cried and fist-bumped each other, there was an odd emptiness in the balcony box where so many presidents have sat in the past. The bipartisan tradition includes Republicans from Ronald Reagan to George W. Bush and Democrats from Bill Clinton to Barack Obama, but President Trump declined after honorees threatened a boycott.
“I was in Richmond [during the white supremacist rally] in Charlottesville,” de Lavallade said. “When I saw the comments the president made [about] nice people [on both sides], it just didn’t sit well. I’m 86, I’ve performed all my life, I’ve always done what’s asked of me, I’m a team player. This is the first time in my life I said, ‘No.’ Something in my soul said, ‘No more.’ … I feel very good about it. I’ve never felt like this before. I felt that this is when I grew up.”
The event will air in a two-hour primetime special on CBS on Tuesday, Dec. 26 at 9 p.m.
