Beyonce, Jay-Z Endorse Hillary Clinton1:57
Beyonce and her husband, Jay-Z, endorsed Hillary Clinton for president on Friday night, during a get-out-the-vote concert in Cleveland. Photo: AP
Behold, Hillary Clinton’s secret weapon: Beyonce
HILLARY CLINTON dispatched musical and political celebrities across battleground states on Friday to try to energise Democrats in what’s become an increasingly competitive race.
Donald Trump, meanwhile, defended his go-it-alone approach.
The Democratic presidential nominee wrapped up a day of campaign stops at a packed, star-studded concert in Cleveland. Standing alongside singer Beyonce and her husband, rapper Jay Z, on a brightly lit stage at the Wolstein Center, Clinton lavished praise on the celebrity couple and asked thousands of cheering fans their votes.
“Please take this energy out with you,” she said, rattling off the address of an early voting location. “Help us win Ohio.”
Beyonce performed shortly after her husband Jay Z performed a medley of his own hits over the years for the jam-packed crowd.
She opened her mini-concert with her hit song “Formation” and spoke to the crowd.
“There was a time when a woman’s opinion did not matter ... less than 100 years ago women did not have the right to vote, look how far we’ve come to having no voice to being on the brink of history by electing the first woman president. But we have to vote. The world looks to us as a progressive country that needs change,” the singer told the cheering crowd.
“I want my daughter to grow up seeing a woman lead our country and know that her possibilities are limitless.”
In response, Trump bragged that he didn’t need stars to draw thousands to his events. “I didn’t have to bring J-Lo or Jay Z,” he told a crowded rally Friday night in Hershey, Pennsylvania. “I am here all by myself. Just me. No guitar, no piano, no nothing.”
Trump, whose controversial campaign has divided the Republican Party, has appeared with a ragtag group of supporters including former Indiana University basketball coach Bobby Knight. An event with New Jersey Governor Chris Christie scheduled for Saturday was cancelled after two of his top aides were found guilty Friday on all counts for their roles in the George Washington Bridge lane closure scandal.
Clinton’s campaign has hosted a series of free concerts designed to drum up enthusiasm for her bid, particularly among millennials and minority voters. Rocker Bon Jovi and R&B; singer Ne-Yo rallied voters in North Carolina, while singer/actor Jennifer Lopez took the stage in Miami and singer Steve Wonder was performing in Philadelphia.
On Saturday night, Clinton will host a concert with pop star Katy Perry in Philadelphia, then return to the city on Monday for a joint rally with President Barack Obama, first lady Michelle Obama and Clinton’s husband, former President Bill Clinton.
Originally published as Clinton unveils her secret weapon