It’s no secret that President-elect Donald Trump has been struggling to find high-profile artists to perform at his Presidential Inauguration on January 20.
Rebecca Ferguson, runner-up on the 2010 season of the UK’s X Factor, has said that she will accept Trump’s invitation to perform at the ceremony on one condition: that she be allowed to sing “Strange Fruit,” a song made famous by Billie Holliday in 1939 that protests the lynchings of African Americans.
On Twitter, Ferguson outlined her demands:
“I’ve been asked and this is my answer. If you allow me to sing ‘Strange Fruit,’ a song that has huge historical importance, a song that was blacklisted in the United States for being too controversial. A song that speaks to all the disregarded and downtrodden black people in the United States. A song that is a reminder of how love is the only thing that will conquer all the hatred in this world, then I will graciously accept your invitation and see you in Washington.”
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The condition seems to be a rather thinly-veiled jab at Donald Trump, who has been frequently criticized for his attitude toward minorities and marginalized people in American society.
We will be waiting patiently to see if Ferguson’s demands are met, but somehow we think that we won’t be seeing her in Washington, DC in January.
Check out Billie Holiday’s version below.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h4ZyuULy9zs
