Monae and Lamar were invited as musical guests at the annual Fourth of July picnic at The White House.
Monday, July 4th, marked the last picnic of Barack Obama’s presidency. This day also marks 240th anniversary of nation’s independence.
For the annual White House’s picnic for the military and their families Kendrick Lamar performed some of his biggest hits, all in children-friendly versions (trick, don’t kill my vibe). Janelle Monae on the other hand covered Prince’s “Let’s Go Crazy.”
The President spoke about both artists, “I have to tell you, these two, I’ve gotten a chance to know,and they are both amazing artists and talented and popular and doing great things… But they are also very conscious about their responsibilities and obligations. And they put in a lot of time and effort on behalf of a lot of causes that are important. We are very proud of them.”
Obama reminded that independence is a constant work in progress, “That’s story of independence is not something that happens and then we just put away. It’s something we have to fight for every single day.”
Additionally, on Monday, Obama’s older daughter, Malia, turned 18 on which occasion the POTUS himself sang her “Happy Birthday” accompanied by Kendrick and Janelle. “Because it’s the job of a father to embarrass his daughters, I’ve got one last job,” said Obama right before his sing-along.
