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Whether we like it or not, Donald Trump<\/strong><\/a> is gearing up to be sworn in as the 47th president of the United States. This means that Trump\u2014 who was recently sentenced to an \u201cunconditional discharge\u201d<\/a> in his hush money case, and will face no penalty in the form of prison time, probation, or a fine\u2014must find entertainers willing to perform at the event, which in the past has been easier said than done<\/a> for the polarizing politician.<\/p>\n Trump\u2019s team has tapped American Idol<\/em> winner and country star Carrie Underwood<\/strong><\/a> to sing \u201cAmerica the Beautiful\u201d at the event. \u201cI 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,\u201d the singer said in a statement on Monday<\/a>. \u201cI 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.\u201d But who will sing the national anthem\u2014arguably the eleven o\u2019clock number of any inauguration?<\/p>\n For his 2017 inauguration, Trump went with an America\u2019s Got Talent<\/em> runner-up, child soprano Jackie Evancho.<\/strong> This time, according to screenshots of the program<\/a> for the inauguration, it appears that Trump has gone with an even less well-known name: Christopher D. Macchio.<\/strong> A representative for Macchio confirmed to Vanity Fair<\/em> that the singer will be present at multiple inauguration events, including the swearing in ceremony, where he\u2019ll sing the national anthem with the US Marine Corps band orchestra and choir.<\/p>\n So, who is<\/em> Christopher Macchio?<\/p>\n According to his personal website<\/a>, which doesn\u2019t appear to have been updated since 2021, \u201cAmerica\u2019s Tenor\u201d Christopher Macchio is an opera singer hailing from Long Island, New York. He studied classical voice at Manhattan School of Music and has been performing ever since.<\/p>\n He does not boast professional credits at any of the major opera houses, like New York\u2019s Metropolitan Opera, Milan\u2019s La Scala, or the Sydney Opera House; instead, Macchio made his professional debut in a concert special for PBS Television, and followed that up with appearances on Fox, NBC, ABC, and RAI International. He has released two albums\u2014Dolci Momenti<\/em> (Sweet Moments) and a Christmas album, O Holy Night<\/em>\u2014and sometimes appears as a guest singer in concerts with David Foster<\/strong> (who is now married to American Idol<\/em> runner-up Katharine McPhee Foster<\/strong>). Macchio is also one of the three New York Tenors,<\/a> alongside Andy Cooney<\/strong> and Daniel Rodriguez,<\/strong> and semi-regularly performs concerts with them at Carnegie Hall and Lincoln Center. He has appeared in two films: mafia comedy Don Q<\/em> and the faith-based biopic Cabrini,<\/em> directed by Sound of Freedom<\/em><\/a>\u2019s Alejandro Monteverde.<\/strong><\/p>\n Macchio didn\u2019t get his \u201cbig break,\u201d so to speak, until he caught the eye of Phantom of the Opera<\/em>\u2013lover Trump. Initially, Macchio has shared on Instagram, it was Trump\u2019s late brother Robert who was a \u201cbig, big fan\u201d<\/a> of his vocal stylings. Macchio first met the president-elect<\/a> when the tenor was called in as a last-minute replacement for a New Year\u2019s Eve performance at Mar-a-Lago. He eventually followed that up by performing for Trump on the White House patio during the Republican National Convention in 2020 after Trump accepted his party\u2019s nomination.<\/p>\n Macchio has been riding on the Trump bandwagon ever since, regularly performing opera classics like \u201cAve Maria\u201d and \u201cNessun Dorma,\u201d as well as Leonard Cohen\u2019s oft-covered \u201cHallelujah\u201d at Trump rallies and campaign stops in Pennsylvania, Madison Square Garden<\/a>, and at Trump\u2019s golf club in Bedminster<\/a>, New Jersey. He now boasts that he\u2019s Trump\u2019s \u201cfavorite singer,\u201d<\/a> and even performed<\/a> at the Trump HQ election-night party. He proudly posted a video<\/a> of himself posing with the president-elect at an event in Mar-a-Lago<\/a> shortly after.<\/p>\n On social media, he is avowedly MAGA and conservative, reposting and promoting right-wing content from Elon Musk<\/strong> and Russell Brand<\/strong> while simultaneously remaining \u201ca firm believer in the unifying power\u201d of music.<\/a> Whatever he says about unity, though, Macchio seems to know where his bread is buttered. \u201cI\u2019m so privileged to be a part of his circle, his family, and the entire Trump organization,\u201d he said in a video<\/a> shared on his Instagram. It seems that remaining loyal to Trump has paid off, as Macchio now joins the pantheon of performers like Beyonc\u00e9<\/strong> and Lady Gaga<\/strong> who have sung the national anthem at a presidential inauguration. God bless America (and help us all).<\/p>\n<\/div>\n