The Chainsmokers won’t be getting “Closer” to Donald Trump at his inauguration.
After New York Magazine’s Brian Feldman tweeted that “the chainsmokers are performing at the inauguration,” the ear-candy-making group’s manager gave TheWrap a quick one-word response: “False.”
Feldman later clarified: “It was a joke about how they’re a bad group.”
It was fun, for a few seconds, to imagine fist-pumping Trump supporters singing along with “Don’t Let Me Down” while they hoped their new president wouldn’t let them down, but no. The Top 40 overlords will be doing something else on Jan. 20.
TheWrap exclusively Wednesday that Trump’s team is struggling so hard to book A-list performers for his inaugural festivities that two talent bookers said they were offered ambassadorships if they could deliver marquee names. The inauguration team has its sights set on top-tier talents like Justin Timberlake, Bruno Mars, Katy Perry and Aretha Franklin, and were willing to pay steep fees for the performers. On Wednesday, news broke that Trump’s team had managed to enlist 16-year-old former “America’s Got Talent” star Jackie Evancho.
In a statement to TheWrap, Trump’s team denied offering any ambassadorships. “There is no truth to this insinuation,” said committee spokesman Boris Epshteyn. “First-class entertainers are eager to participate in the inaugural events. The inauguration as a whole will be an exciting and uniting celebration of freedom and democracy. We will be releasing further details at the appropriate time.”
Don’t let us down.