Brittany Howard, Leon Bridges & Others Perform At White House ‘Smithsonian Salutes Ray Charles’

As previously reported, last evening President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama hosted the Smithsonian Salutes Ray Charles: In Performance At The White House live concert in honor of the iconic Ray Charles. The 16th installment of the In Performance at the White House include musical tributes from Leon Bridges, Alabama Shakes’ Brittany Howard, and many others. The program was directed by Rickey Minor and will be shown tomorrow night, Friday, February 26 at 9 p.m. ET on PBS.

The event was the final In Performance At The White House concert with President Obama as host. Obama spoke before the concert began, saying “On stage and in the studio, Ray did it all: jazz, R&B, rock ‘n’ roll, pop. He even helped bring the country music he loved to a broader audience. But whatever genre of music he was playing, there was no mistaking his singular sound – that virtuoso piano playing that matched that one-of-a-kind voice.”

Despite promising not to sing this time, the POTUS was enlisted at the end of the concert to help out on the “What’d I Say” finale. Howard delivered a rendition of “Heaven Help Us All” and Bridges offered a take on “Lonely Avenue.” Video footage of a replay of the livestream from last night is currently available. Watch Howard and Bridges as well as Yolanda Adams, Andra Day, Anthony Hamilton, Demi Lovato, Sam Moore, Jussie Smollett, The Band Perry and Usher honoring Ray Charles at the White House (starting at 1:25:00):

https://youtu.be/fL3xnRdnsQk?t=1h25m39s