President Biden is tapping Lady Gaga as a co-chair of a star-studded White House committee that is poised to count George Clooney, Jennifer Garner, Shonda Rhimes and Jon Batiste among its members.
The “Applause” singer will co-chair the President’s Committee on the Arts and the Humanities, the White House announced on Thursday.
Award-winning producer Bruce Cohen will serve as the other co-chairman on the council.
Lady Gaga, who was born Stefani Germanotta, was a vocal Biden supporter in the 2020 White House race and performed at his presidential inauguration.
In addition to Clooney, mega-producer and screenwriter Rhimes, musician Batiste and actor Garner, the list of appointees to the arts-focused committee includes a who’s who of Hollywood: singer Joe Walsh, “Little Fires Everywhere” star Kerry Washington, Academy Award-winning actor Troy Kotsur, “Friends” creator Marta Kauffman and producer Ricky Kirshner.
Additional names include former Rep. Steve Israel (D-N.Y.), Berkeley City College President Angélica Garcia, art historian Nora Halpern and artist Amanda Phingbodhipakkiya, among others.
It’s not uncommon for celebrity heavy hitters to be named to the committee. Past members include actor Kal Penn, cellist Yo-Yo Ma, Vogue Editor-in-Chief Anna Wintour and Forest Whitaker.
In 2017, several members of the committee who were appointed by former President Obama — including Penn, director George Wolfe and artist Chuck Close — quit in protest of then-President Trump.
Former President Reagan created the committee in the early 1980s to serve as an advisory committee to the White House on cultural issues.