For the first time in 40 years — since Ronald Reagan’s swearing-in ceremony in 1985 — a presidential inauguration is taking place indoors, per The Associated Press.
President-elect Donald Trump’s inauguration on Monday has been moved indoors to the Capitol Rotunda due to “dangerously cold temperatures,” as the Deseret News reported.
It’ll be a significantly smaller crowd than opera singer Christopher Macchio was anticipating when he first accepted the invitation to sing the national anthem for the momentous occasion — but he’s still not taking it lightly.
“I was looking forward to seeing 100,000 people spread across the National Mall,” Macchio told The Associated Press. “Unfortunately I won’t be getting that visual while I perform, but it’s still going to be such a tremendous honor.”
Here’s a brief look at Macchio’s career, and his history with President-elect Trump.
Who is Christopher Macchio?
Macchio, a tenor from New York, discovered his passion for singing while participating in his high school chorus — “a class in which he had reluctantly enrolled to meet a state graduation requirement,” per his website.
With some inspiration from his chorus teacher, he decided to focus on pursuing a music career. He studied classical vocal performance at the Manhattan School of Music, working with Metropolitan Opera baritone Theodor Uppman, according to his website.
He released his debut album, “Dolci Momenti,” in 2010, highlighting opera classics like “Nessun Dorma” and “‘O Sole Mio.” His second album, “O Holy Night,” came out in 2020, per NBC.com.
Last year, he made his film debut as “Giovanni the singer” in Angel Studios’ biopic “Cabrini,” per his website. Macchio frequently performs both as a solo artist and as a member of the New York Tenors.
How does Donald Trump know Christopher Macchio?
Macchio says he first met Trump roughly nine years ago, when he was asked to fill in last minute at a New Year’s Eve celebration held at Mar-a-Lago.
“No one had really heard of me at that point,” Macchio said in a video shared on his YouTube page, adding that a member at Mar-a-Lago told Trump about Macchio. “So Donald said, ‘bring him down, fly him down.’ ... And it went over extremely well.”
The performance, Macchio said, captured the attention of rocker Rod Stewart, who asked the opera singer to perform at his 70th birthday party just 10 days later.
Macchio performed at the memorial service for Trump’s brother, Robert Trump, in 2020, according to The Associated Press.
“Robert was a big, big fan of Christopher,” Donald Trump said in a video shared on Macchio’s Instagram.
That same year, Macchio performed for Trump on the White House patio during the Republican National Convention, per Vanity Fair. During that appearance, the opera singer performed several numbers, including Leonard Cohen’s “Hallelujah,” “Ave Maria,” “God Bless America” and “America the Beautiful,” according to his website.
Macchio has been especially connected with Trump this election cycle.
Last year, he performed at the Republican National Convention; a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, that took place a few months after an attempted assassination of the former president at the site; and a rally at Madison Square Garden, per The Associated Press.
“For those folks who might not have voted for President Trump, I hope that they’ll give me that kind of opportunity to just listen and just really connect with the music,” he told The Associated Press. “I’ll be doing the national anthem and it is meant to do honor to our great country.”
Country star Carrie Underwood, who is performing “America the Beautiful” at the inauguration, expressed a similar sentiment.
“I love our country and am honored to have been asked to sing at the inauguration and to be a small part of this historic event,” she said in a statement to People. “I am humbled to answer the call at a time when we must all come together in the spirit of unity and looking to the future.”
The inauguration takes place Monday at 10 a.m. MST.