President Donald Trump saluted American cultural icons, including Texas legend George Strait, as this year’s Kennedy Center Honorees.
Trump hosted five artists – Strait, actor Sylvester Stallone, disco singer Gloria Gaynor, the rock band KISS, and stage and screen star Michael Crawford – to receive medallions from The John F. Kennedy Center on December 6.
“These are some of the greatest of all time,” Trump said at the dinner. “Congratulations to all of you.”
President Donald J. Trump presents medallions to the 2025 Kennedy Center Honors recipients. 🇺🇸 pic.twitter.com/06IRlZUvpV
— The White House (@WhiteHouse) December 7, 2025
Strait, a lifelong Texan, is known as the “King of Country.” He was born in the small town of Poteet in 1952, where he spent time riding horses and roping cattle. Starting in the 1980s and 1990s, Strait revived Western music with close ties to Texas culture.
He has sold more than 120 million records, sang 60 number-one hits, and produced 33 platinum albums – more than any other living American. Strait is the only artist in history to have a Top 10 hit every year for more than 30 years.
“George Strait, ‘King of Country’ – that’s great,” Trump said.
THE KING OF COUNTRY! 🇺🇸 pic.twitter.com/b6fj7G6HS7
— Margo Martin (@MargoMartin47) December 6, 2025
Stallone is a prominent Hollywood actor who found his breakthrough in the 1976 film “Rocky.” He also starred in movies like “Rambo,” “Cobra,” and “Creed,” grossing more than $7.5 billion.
“Decades and even centuries from now, people will watch and admire the films of Sylvester Stallone,” Trump said. “There’s nobody else who can do those films.”
Gaynor rose to fame singing the popular 1978 disco song “I Will Survive,” for which she won a Grammy. The song was inducted into the National Recording Registry in 2016, and she won a second Grammy in 2020 for a gospel album.
“Fantastic job. You look so well,” Trump said. “Thank you very much, Gloria.”
KISS, including Paul Stanley, Gene Simmons, Peter Criss, and the late Ace Frehley, became widely popular in the 1970s. The band sparked global fervor, selling more than 100 million records, joining the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, and producing 30 gold albums – the most of any American band.
“These guys get along,” Trump said. “I was watching them, they really respect each other, they really like each other. I just congratulate them.”
Crawford starred in the rock opera sensation “Phantom of the Opera,” which hit Broadway in 1988. He made his Broadway debut in 1967 and soon became a worldwide sensation.
“It’s all on tape, thank goodness for tape,” Trump said. “The voice was magnificent, but the way he moved, and the hands, the whole thing – there’ll never be anything like it.”
Ambassador Richard Grenell, president of the Kennedy Center, said the group has been honoring significant cultural figures for nearly 50 years.
“This tradition has celebrated those whose voices and visions tell our nation’s story and share it with the world,” Grenell said. “This year’s Honorees have left an indelible mark on our history, reminding us that the arts are for everyone.”
In his remarks, Trump thanked Grenell and Kennedy Center Board Member Sergio Gor, the new ambassador to India.
“These wonderful people that are here tonight, the legacies they’ve forged have become an integral part of Americans’ priceless cultural heritage,” Trump said. “Each of them has given us treasures that will be passed down to every future generation.”
Strait held the largest ticketed concert in American history in 2024, packing Texas A&M University’s Kyle Field with nearly 110,905 spectators, as Fox 4 reported.
After catastrophic floods in the Texas Hill Country, Strait held a benefit concert in July with Garth Brooks and Gov. Greg Abbott, raising $6.25 million, as The Dallas Express reported. Later this summer, Abbott visited affected areas to deliver relief checks from the concert.
