Millennium Stage
Couch Concert
The Pattern
Hip hop embraces these artistic elements, most definitely. But it also has blended and transcended them to become a means for seeing, celebrating, experiencing, understanding, confronting, and commenting on life and the world. Hip hop, in other words, is a way of living—a culture.
"Popular" music isn't just one type of music-- it's just a way to describe music that a lot of people really like. This collection explores popular music in different genres, like the chart-toppers of Motown, the fight songs in football, American styles like jazz, blues, country, bluegrass, and R&B as well as the history of popular American songs from other eras, and just WHY the music connects with us.Â
Foot thumping rhythms, crooning voices, soulful melodies – jazz is a music with a history as rich as its sound. Follow the great migration that lead African Americans to Harlem, meet jazz icons such as Bessie Smith and Charlie Parker, and stop by the Cotton Club and Apollo Theater on a journey through the past of this American art form.
Watch extraordinary performances from the Kennedy Center's stages and beyond.
Free to Members and Subscribers
Famed for its four-note opening, Beethoven’s Fifth is imaginative, violent, and brimming with drama.
Wed. - Sat. at 6 p.m. ET
Experience something extraordinary live from the Kennedy Center. Attend in person or watch our livestreams and explore a video archive from over 20 years of great performances.
Explore our deep archive of video highlights from this annual event paying tribute to our nation's preeminent artists with performances by the great stars of today who have followed in their footsteps.
Watch the Full Show with a free Kennedy Center account.
