Cyndi Lauper and Sam Smith performed at the White House to celebrate President Joe Biden signing the Respect for Marriage Act into law on Tuesday.
President Biden signed the historic bill, which will protect same-sex and interracial marriage rights at the federal level, in front of thousands of guests on the White House’s South Lawn in Washington D.C.
To mark the momentous occasion, Lauper sang her 1986 song True Colors, which has since become an LGBTQ+ anthem, and Smith, who identifies as non-binary and uses they/them pronouns, performed a moving rendition of their 2014 smash hit Stay with Me.
In addition, Lady Gaga’s Born This Way, which is also an LGBTQ+ anthem, was played immediately after Biden signed the bill.
Before her performance, Lauper, a longtime LGBTQ+ advocate, made a surprise appearance in the White House briefing room to thank Biden, Vice President Kamala Harris, Speaker Nancy Pelosi and their team for passing the bill.
“For once, our families – mine and a lot of my friends and people you know, sometimes your neighbours – we can rest easy tonight because our families are validated and because now we are allowed to love who we love, which sounds odd to say, but Americans can now love who we love,” she told reporters. “Bless Joe Biden and all the people who worked on this for allowing people not to worry, and their children not to worry, about their future.”
The Respect for Marriage Act passed with bipartisan support in both chambers of Congress within the last few weeks.
