{"id":48036,"date":"2025-10-01T14:49:29","date_gmt":"2025-10-01T14:49:29","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/musicianvoice.com\/index.php\/2025\/10\/01\/kennedy-center-union-wants-investigation-into-yasmin-williams-heckling\/"},"modified":"2025-10-01T14:49:29","modified_gmt":"2025-10-01T14:49:29","slug":"kennedy-center-union-wants-investigation-into-yasmin-williams-heckling","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/musicianvoice.com\/index.php\/2025\/10\/01\/kennedy-center-union-wants-investigation-into-yasmin-williams-heckling\/","title":{"rendered":"Kennedy Center Union Wants Investigation Into Yasmin Williams Heckling"},"content":{"rendered":"<p> <br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-line-height-copy  lrv-a-font-body-l   \">\n\tThe <a href=\"https:\/\/www.rollingstone.com\/t\/kennedy-center\/\" id=\"auto-tag_kennedy-center\" data-tag=\"kennedy-center\">Kennedy Center<\/a>\u2019s workers\u2019 union is demanding an investigation after the guitar player <a href=\"https:\/\/www.rollingstone.com\/t\/yasmin-williams\/\" id=\"auto-tag_yasmin-williams\" data-tag=\"yasmin-williams\">Yasmin Williams<\/a> was heckled during a recent performance by a group of conservatives, allegedly at the behest of Trump appointees at the institution.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-line-height-copy  lrv-a-font-body-l   \">\n\tWilliams\u2019 show at the Kennedy Center took place Sept. 18, several months after the guitarist shared a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.rollingstone.com\/music\/music-news\/yasmin-williams-richard-grenell-emails-kennedy-center-1235314184\/\">contentious email exchange<\/a> between herself and Richard Grenell \u2014 the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.rollingstone.com\/music\/music-features\/kennedy-center-artists-who-canceled-concerts-trump-takeover-1235268742\/\">Trump crony named<\/a> interim executive director at the Kennedy Center \u2014 over <a href=\"https:\/\/www.rollingstone.com\/politics\/political-commentary\/trump-kennedy-center-cultural-power-grab-1235268600\/\">changes to the institution\u2019s DEI initiatives<\/a> and the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.rollingstone.com\/music\/music-news\/gay-mens-chorus-dc-appearance-kennedy-center-canceled-1235274251\/\">cancellation<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.rollingstone.com\/music\/music-news\/guster-kennedy-center-canceled-musical-finn-cast-1235306410\/\">of certain shows<\/a>. While Williams considered calling off her own performance in protest, she decided to go ahead with it in solidarity with the Kennedy Center staff and their union.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-line-height-copy  lrv-a-font-body-l   \">\n\tAt the end of her <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/DOWGzvRjQ5N\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener nofollow\">note<\/a> at the time, Williams included a good-natured dig at Grenell, saying he could \u201ccome too\u2026 only if you can stomach sitting next to people who may not look like you or have your same politics\u2026 and if you can handle a polite verbal jab (or two) from me.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-line-height-copy  lrv-a-font-body-l   \">\n\tIt\u2019s unclear if Grenell (who was also just <a href=\"https:\/\/www.rollingstone.com\/music\/music-news\/live-nation-names-ric-grenell-board-of-directors-trump-ally-1235344483\/\">added to Live Nation\u2019s board of directors<\/a>) attended the show, but Kennedy Center staffers told the <em><a rel=\"noreferrer noopener nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonian.com\/2025\/09\/23\/log-cabin-republicans-yasmin-williams\/\">Washingtonian<\/a><\/em> that the interim chairman\u2019s office did set aside 50 seats for members of the Log Cabin Republicans, a gay conservative group. The Kennedy Center United Arts Workers union has since alleged that it was the Grenell-appointed executive vice president, Rick Loughery, who gave out the front row seats and free drink tickets, along with \u201cinstructions to harass [Williams] and disrupt the performance.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-line-height-copy  lrv-a-font-body-l   \">\n\tThe D.C. chapter of the Log Cabin Republicans was already scheduled to hold its monthly meeting that night on the Kennedy Center terrace, but a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/DO1CIQYjaxj\/?img_index=1\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener nofollow\">widely-circulated email<\/a> to members \u201cencouraged\u201d them to arrive early for Williams\u2019 concert. The email described Williams as \u201cliberal,\u201d adding, \u201cShe is apparently vocal [<em>sic<\/em>] opponent of President Trump and The Kennedy Center\u2019s decision to hold a vigil for Charlie Kirk. Let\u2019s make sure the audience is filled with patriots!\u201d<\/p>\n<section class=\"brands-most-popular \/\/ editors-pick-module lrv-u-margin-tb-2 lrv-u-border-a-2 u-box-shadow-5-5 lrv-u-padding-lr-1 a-span1 u-padding-b-1@tablet u-overflow-hidden\">\n<h2 id=\"section-heading\" class=\"c-heading larva  lrv-u-text-align-center u-border-color-black a-font-theme-primary-xxs lrv-u-color-black lrv-u-text-transform-uppercase u-letter-spacing-0063 lrv-u-padding-t-050 u-padding-b-0375@tablet lrv-u-padding-b-050@mobile-max lrv-u-border-b-2\">\n<p>\t\tEditor\u2019s picks<\/p>\n<\/h2>\n<\/section>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-line-height-copy  lrv-a-font-body-l   \">\n\tWhile Williams had plenty of fans and supporters in the crowd, the conservative group reportedly heckled, booed, and harassed the guitarist throughout her performance. In a video of the performance, which is still up on <a rel=\"noreferrer noopener nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/live\/Mqz9BRWjBKI?si=YPha7LjEFYt0STu7\">YouTube<\/a>, a loud bunch of boos can be heard after Williams said, \u201cI don\u2019t support anyone affiliated with the Trump administration at all, especially you, Ric Grenell.\u201d At one point, someone in the crowd allegedly told Williams that she should mention Kirk. Williams later claimed that, because of the disruptions, security \u201cescorted her out of the building\u201d after the show.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-line-height-copy  lrv-a-font-body-l   \">\n\tWilliams and the Kennedy Center Union called out the hecklers, and their alleged ties to Grennell\u2019s office, after the performance, the Union renewed their criticism in a post shared yesterday, Sept. 30. The union, which has not been recognized, called on the Kennedy Center Board of Trustees and Human Resources to \u201cinvestigate and respond to this abuse of power\u201d by Loughery and Grenell.\u00a0<\/p>\n<section class=\"brands-most-popular \/\/ recirculation-modules trending-in-article lrv-u-margin-tb-2 lrv-u-border-a-2 u-box-shadow-5-5 lrv-u-padding-lr-1 a-span1 u-padding-b-1@tablet u-overflow-hidden\">\n<h2 id=\"section-heading\" class=\"c-heading larva  lrv-u-text-align-center u-border-color-black a-font-theme-primary-xxs lrv-u-color-black lrv-u-text-transform-uppercase u-letter-spacing-0063 lrv-u-padding-t-050 u-padding-b-0375@tablet lrv-u-padding-b-050@mobile-max lrv-u-border-b-2\">\n<p>\t\tTrending Stories<\/p>\n<\/h2>\n<\/section>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-line-height-copy  lrv-a-font-body-l   \">\n\t\u201cThe environment (aided and abetted by Grenell\u2019s most senior appointee) was so hostile that employees found it necessary to call security on behalf of the performers,\u201d the group wrote, adding: \u201cIf this is what our appointed leaders are willing to do in full view of the public, what are they up to behind the scenes? Harassment and intimidation of artists has no place in OUR national cultural center.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-line-height-copy  lrv-a-font-body-l   \">\n\tReps for the Kennedy Center and the Log Cabin Republicans\u2019 D.C. chapter did not immediately return <em>Rolling Stone<\/em>\u2019s requests for comment.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-instagram wp-block-embed-instagram\"\/>\n<\/div>\n<p><script async src=\"\/\/www.instagram.com\/embed.js\"><\/script><br \/>\n<br \/><br \/>\n<br \/><a href=\"https:\/\/www.rollingstone.com\/music\/music-news\/kennedy-center-union-investigation-yasmin-williams-heckling-1235438829\/\">Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The Kennedy Center\u2019s workers\u2019 union is demanding an investigation after the guitar player Yasmin Williams was heckled during a recent performance by a group&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":48037,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[36],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-48036","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-pop","article","has-excerpt","has-avatar","has-author","has-date","has-comment-count","has-category-meta","has-read-more","thumbnail-"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/musicianvoice.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/48036","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/musicianvoice.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/musicianvoice.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/musicianvoice.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/musicianvoice.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=48036"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/musicianvoice.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/48036\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/musicianvoice.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/48037"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/musicianvoice.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=48036"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/musicianvoice.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=48036"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/musicianvoice.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=48036"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}