Lady Gaga Appointed Co-Chair of Committee on the Arts and the Humanities
Lady Gaga delivers remarks after a performance at a drive-in Election Day eve rally for then Vice-President Biden in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania on Monday, November 2, 2020 (Jared Wickerham/Biden for President).
The board was disbanded during the Trump Administration, but will now return after five years.
Article by Georgia Simon, Associate White House Reporter
WASHINGTON - The White House announced on April 13th, that alongside academy award winner Bruce Cohen and singer Lady Gaga will be the co-chair of the returning Arts and Humanities Committee. Gaga is a 13-time Grammy award winner and a long activist for mental health and LGBTQI+ communities.
“PCAH advises the President and the heads of U.S. cultural agencies on policy, philanthropic and private sector engagement, and other efforts to enhance federal supports of the arts, humanities, and museum and library services,” The White House said in the announcement statement.
The Presidents Committee on the Arts and Humanities (PCAH), was first founded by an Executive Order in 1982. While the President appoints members, the First Lady also had served as Honorary Chair of the Committee.
"Welcome newly appointed members of the President's Committee on the Arts and the Humanities, led by @BruceCohen83 and @ladygaga! We look forward to partnering to positively impact the arts, libraries, museums, and humanities work across the country,” PCAH tweeted after the announcement.
Board members also consist of Shonda Rhimes, Jon Batiste, Troy Kotsur, George Clooney, Jennifer Garner, Kerry Washington and more.
In the announcement statement, The White House said “ Lady Gaga is known for her philanthropy and staunch support of LGBTQI+ rights and mental health. She has traveled with President Biden to support the It’s On Us campaign to combat campus sexual assault, has worked tirelessly over the years to advocate for equality, and has been an outspoken champion of mental health awareness.”
“Alongside her mother Cynthia Germanotta, she founded and leads Born This Way Foundation, which supports the mental health of young people and works with them to build a kinder and braver world. Since its inception, the Foundation has demonstrated the transformative power of kindness and its impact on mental health through youth-driven initiatives, research-based programming, and high-level partnerships,” The White House added.
Back in 2021, Gaga performed at President Biden’s Inauguration, where she sang “The Star-Spangled Banner” alongside the United States Marine Band.
Ahead of the performance, Gaga tweeted “Singing our National Anthem for the American People is my honor. I will sing during a ceremony, a transition, a moment of change - between POTUS 45 and 46. For me, this has great meaning.”
Gaga was also recently nominated for an Oscar in the Best Original Song category for “Hold My Hand,” which was featured in Top Gun: Maverick in 2022.
Following the announcement, Gaga tweeted saying “Thank you @POTUS @PCAHgov.”