James Taylor's scheduled performance on the first day of the 2024 Democratic National Convention in Chicago was scrapped due to scheduling issues which also led to President Joe Biden's speech being moved out of primetime, according to reports.
While country singers Mickey Guyton and Jason Isbell both appeared on stage at the event, Taylor's only performance was a sound check, where he played "You've Got a Friend."
The musician was set to appear between speeches by Biden's daughter Ashley and wife Jill, leading up to Biden's final address but was bumped from the event due to the wild applause of the crowd interrupting speakers, which led to speeches running long, according to a convention official speaking to The Hollywood Reporter.
"Because of the raucous applause interrupting speaker after speaker, we ultimately skipped elements of our program to ensure we could get to President Biden as quickly as possible so that he could speak directly to the American people," the official said. "We are proud of the electric atmosphere in our convention hall and proud that our convention is showcasing the broad and diverse coalition behind the Harris-Walz ticket throughout the week on and off the stage."
THR noted Taylor was to take to the stage during the 10 p.m. ET block. Further, Biden could only speak after 11:30 p.m due to scheduling issues. Taking to the stage, the president doubled down on the Democratic Party's support for Vice President Kamala Harris as the leader in the upcoming presidential race against Republican Donald Trump.
"Are you ready to vote for freedom? Are you ready to vote for democracy and for America? Let me ask you, are you ready to elect Kamala Harris and Tim Walz?" Biden said, referencing Harris' running mate.
His speech was "painfully, gruesomely long," former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee told Newsmax on Tuesday, noting that Biden "told lie after lie."
"We have to look at the fact that this is the Democrats' convention," Huckabee told "Wake Up America." "Let them celebrate, let them have their party, but the fact is, he stood there and just told lie after lie."
Reuters contributed to this report.
Zoe Papadakis ✉
Zoe Papadakis is a Newsmax writer based in South Africa with two decades of experience specializing in media and entertainment. She has been in the news industry as a reporter, writer and editor for newspapers, magazine and websites.
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