Lady Gaga slated to sing National Anthem at inauguration

Lady Gaga will perform the National Anthem at the inauguration of Joe Biden

The dawn of a new era in Washington – and the entire country – is coming as Joe Biden and Kamala Harris are sworn in at the inauguration ceremony on January 20. Though the day will be steeped in tension amid everything that has been happening in the nation’s capitol over the past few weeks, there is still room for the traditions and the pomp and circumstance of a presidential inauguration and Lady Gaga will be center stage for all of it.

Lady Gaga is set to sing “The Star-Spangled Banner” at the inauguration. Lady Gaga was a vocal supporter of Biden and Harris during their campaign, often making appearances along the campaign trail and speaking out on social media about her support, and so it’s no surprise that she has been asked to kick off the inauguration with the National Anthem.

Biden and Harris will be sworn in at approximately 12pm ET, and there will be speeches, prayers and musical performances to celebrate this momentous occasion. That night, President Biden and Vice President Harris will address the nation and join Tom Hanks for a primetime special featuring more special guests and musical performances.

The 2021 inauguration ceremony will look a lot different than in recent years, for a number of reasons. With the pandemic still raging out of control in many parts of the country and around the globe, there won’t be an opportunity for tens of thousands of people to crowd the National Mall to watch the festivities. The inauguration also comes just two weeks after the insurrection at the United States Capitol building that led to Congress being locked down and the deaths of five people.

Some of the guests and speakers at the event will be broadcast remotely while other carefully vetted guests will appear live and in-person.

Beyonce performed the National Anthem at Barack Obama’s 2013 inauguration. Lady Gaga and Beyonce are the two biggest names to ever perform the National Anthem at inauguration ceremonies, as over the years the job has traditionally gone to various members of the US military.