While the Democratic National Convention will be rooted in Milwaukee next week, many of the normal constituents will not be making the trip, leaving Milwaukeeans to speculate about the convention that could have been. On Friday, the Democratic Party announced the musical performers for the 2020 DNC, a lineup headlined by acts like Billie Eilish, John Legend, Common, The Chicks and many more. Leon Bridges, Jennifer Hudson, Billy Porter, Maggie Rogers, Prince Royce and Steven Stills are all also named in the official release. Per the committee, the performances will include unique versions of the National Anthem, takes on American classics, and new music from the artists, as well.
While many of the performances will be live, Variety is reporting that the convention will offer a mixture of live and curated content, with many of the acts likely performing from home or soundstages in other cities. The broadcast will also feature content from notable landmarks across the country. Performances will be spread across all four nights of the convention.
The choice of performers is certainly diverse, with an intent to capture the attention of a variety of key demographics. Eilish stands out as the youngest performer, and The Chicks, formerly known as The Dixie Chicks, draw attention. The band was one of the biggest acts in country music until their criticism of George W. Bush soured their image within the genre’s conservative leaning industry and fanbase. They recently dropped the word “Dixie” from their name, in an effort to be more sensitive to negative racial connotations around the word.
While it is unknown if many of the selected acts would have initially made the trip to Milwaukee for the DNC, we’ll get to see their performances beginning on Monday via major news stations and the DNC’s official live stream. A full schedule of speakers, with performances likely to be added later, is currently available on the DNC website.
