WASHINGTON (AP) – Swaying to jazz and blues tunes while bopping his head to the beat, President Barack Obama is celebrating what he calls one of the country’s most precious gifts: “American creativity.”
Obama and his wife, Michelle, marked the history of American music Wednesday night as they hosted the PBS television program “In Performance at the White House.” The president also is noting the 50th anniversary of the National Endowment for the Arts and the Humanities.
Obama says that American music is grounded in stories of real people and that lyrics share the tales of hometowns and the hood, love and heartbreak.
The concert is being hosted by Carol Burnett and includes performances by Guy, Usher, James Taylor, Queen Latifah and Smokey Robinson. It will be broadcast on PBS stations in January.