No, Elton John will not be playing Donald Trump’s inauguration despite a Trump adviser’s claim to the contrary.
“Elton will not be performing at Trump’s inauguration,” the musician’s rep told the New York Post.
In a conversation with BBC News earlier on Wednesday, Anthony Scaramucci said he believes that Elton would play at the new president’s inauguration in January after Trump made it clear he wanted the “Tiny Dancer” singer to perform.
“Elton John is going to be doing our concert on the mall for the inauguration,” Scaramucci said, adding that his performance would show their “commitment to gay rights.”
John was an avid Hillary Clinton supporter during the election, calling Trump a “barbarian” while attending a Hollywood fundraiser for Clinton in October.
According to BBC, John’s hits were frequently played at Trump rallies with “Tiny Dancer” and “Rocket Man” being some of the candidate’s favorites, but a publicist for John made it clear that Trump had not been given permission to use the songs.
The Rolling Stones took similar measures when their song “You Can’t Always Get What You Want” played at the Republican National Convention in July, with the band issuing a statement that denounced Trump’s candidacy.
Queen guitarist Brian May also asserted in June that the group never gave Trump permission to use the tune “We Are The Champions,” and were “taking advice on what steps we can take” to prevent it from happening again.
Reps for John have not yet responded to TheWrap’s request for comment.