It’s rare for President Joe Biden to be outshined at his own house, but the collection of celebrated figures gathered in the East Room of the White House threatened to do just that on Tuesday afternoon.
A two-time Pulitzer Prize winner, a pair of beloved humorists and actors, a legendary Boricua guitarist, an icon of fashion, best-selling authors, poets, historians, academics, musicians – and "the Boss" himself.
The White House broke out the proverbial red carpet on Tuesday, as President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Biden commemorated, after a pandemic-induced two-year delay, 23 musicians, artists, humorists, designers, historians, advocates and organizations with the 2021 National Medal of Arts and National Humanities Medals.
The two awards are the highest honors that can be bestowed in response to a person’s work in expanding, deepening and exploring the nation’s understanding of humanity with their art.
“The arts and sciences are essential to the prosperity of the state, and the ornament and happiness of human life,” Biden said, quoting George Washington.
“He knew the greatness of a nation was measured not only by the strength of its army and the vastness of its geography, the size of its economy," Biden said. "It was also measured by the vitality of its culture, and the culture forged and freed of expression, to speak and think freely."
Nearly all of the evening's honorees — including musicians Bruce Springsteen and Gladys Knight, actors Julia Louis-Dreyfus and Mindy Kaling, authors Colson Whitehead and Amy Tan, poet Richard Blanco and artist and actiivist Judith Francisca Baca — were in attendance. Puerto Rican-born guitarrist and songwriter Jose Feliciano was the lone honoree who was unable to be in attendance. The 77-year-old is currently on tour, running a stretch of shows in Hawaii.
Tuesday’s ceremony was the first time since 2020 that the nation’s top medals for arts and humanities have been awarded in a formal event — save for last September, when Biden surprised Elton John with a National Humanities Medal amid a concert on the White House lawn.
John, who was then in the midst of the American leg of his “Goodbye Yellow Brick Road” global farewell tour, had stopped by to headline an evening known as "A Night When Hope and History Rhyme." After John's performance of "Your Song," Biden came back out to offer the award.
“I’ve never been flabbergasted, but I’m flabbergasted,” an emotional John said that night, as his eyes welled with tears.
Biden also couldn't resist an opportunity to tease his plans for 2024. Upon referencing Whitehead's Pulitzer Prize awards for two straight novels — "The Underground Railroad" in 2017, and "The Nickel Boys" in 2020 — Biden smirked.
"I'm kind of looking for a back-to-back myself," Biden said, drawing applause from supporters in the room.