A new era of suits – sorry, powerful suits – started yesterday in this country, no better exemplified than in Demi Lovato’s performance in Celebrating America last night when she sang a cover of Bill Withers’ “Lovely Day”. The televised post-opening event also featured performances by Bruce Springsteen, Katy Perry and Justin Timberlake. Lovato sang the chorus to perfection, including the incessant “beautiful day” on the bridge, all done in an empty room with a moving background and no audience. Remember, she’s not just a fabulous singer, she’s a artist, and she did her best to follow along while announcing a new day for America with a synth-pop arrangement.
The green screen background started in a very innocuous way, just the sun setting over some unidentified city. It remained very healthy, with clips of health professionals and regular old Americans in regular old places coming together to unite this country with dubbing out of pace. Then, a moment of surprise: Lin-Manuel Miranda looking dead at the camera, smiling maliciously as he sang: “Then I look at you”. He didn’t stay on the screen for long, and the background came back to cheerful images of people singing across the United States, with pictures of Joe and Jill Biden holding their grandson Beau and dancing to the undoubtedly insatiable beat. Perhaps if we all write a letter to our new president, he will limit Lin-Manual Miranda’s cameos in his first 100 days. This man is everywhere.