Kennedy Center lawyer's scheme to book his own cover band exposed: report

A Kennedy Center attorney had plans to book his own dad rock band to the Washington, D.C. performing arts center but those dreams got cut short, according to reports on Saturday.

Elliot Berke, the general counsel for the Kennedy Center, attempted to book his cover band called the DePlorables at the location's jazz-themed Speakeasy, three sources who spoke under the condition of anonymity "about a sensitive issue" told Politico.

The Speakeasy generally hosts jazz acts and insiders viewed the move as a potential conflict of interest.

The Kennedy Center denied that Berke had tried to book his own band at the Speakeasy.

“Programmers asked Berke about performing, but he did not think the band was the right genre and did not want the Speakeasy to be viewed as a vanity project for center employees,” according to a statement from the center shared with Politico.

During President Donald Trump's second term, he has made efforts to reshape the Kennedy Center both culturally and physically, installing close allies to key positions at the institution. The center's board, selected by Trump, previously voted to add the president's name to the institution, calling it the Trump Kennedy Center, though Congress has not approved the change. The Kennedy Center has faced significant operational challenges during this period, including staff layoffs in March ahead of a planned two-year closure for renovations and reported difficulties with its fundraising operations.