Despite rampant speculation, Beyoncé never appeared at this year’s Democratic National Convention in Chicago. Still, music played a key role at the gathering.
The superstar’s song “Freedom” has been a campaign anthem for Vice President Kamala Harris since President Biden announced he was no longer running for reelection. The upbeat 2016 song triumphantly declares “I’ma keep running ’cause a winner don’t quit on themselves.” It aligns with the joy experts say permeates through Harris’s campaign.
One of the most memorable moments from the DNC was the ceremonial roll call, during which Democratic delegates announced their votes for Harris. DJ Cassidy played a unique song to represent each state.
Standouts included Georgia’s “Turn Down for What” and “Get Low,” performed live by rapper Lil Jon, and California’s mash-up of several, songs including “California Love” by Tupac and “Not Like Us” by Kendrick Lamar.
The musical celebration got fans on their feet and cheering long before Harris accepted the Democratic nomination for president. It’s a stark contrast to the mood of the roll call at the 2020 convention, which was held virtually amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
The DNC isn’t a stranger to musical moments. Clips of 1996 convention attendees dancing to the then-recently released “Macarena” remix, go viral every four years. It’s possible that organizers wanted to replicate and expand on that kind of memorable musical moment. Harris’s campaign has already been rife with cultural nods — from using a song by one of the biggest pop stars in the world as her official anthem to watching the world debate whether or not she embodies the ideals of Charli XCX’s album Brat.
The roll call wasn’t the only time where music took center stage at the 2024 DNC. Country stars like the Chicks, Mickey Guyton and Maren Morris performed, as did singers Pink, Stevie Wonder, Patti LaBelle and John Legend. Celebrities took the microphone several times too — from host Kerry Washington bringing Tony Goldwyn onstage to Oprah Winfrey’s surprise speech to Mindy Kaling introducing Rep. Nancy Pelosi as “brat.” Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Sheryl Lee Ralph and Mark Hamill also appeared.
Projecting joy and hope has been an early goal of Harris’s campaign. In his first speech as Harris’s running mate, Gov. Tim Walz thanked Harris for “bringing back the joy,” and a day later, Harris called the Democratic ticket “joyful warriors.” As a result, her supporters are experiencing a uniquely enthusiastic cultural moment.
“The mood is Obamacore — the outburst of brightness and positivity that took over pop culture upon the election of our first Black president in 2008,” wrote Vulture’s Nate Jones.
Harris’s campaign and its supporters seem to be following that same playbook of upbeat messaging and embracing pop culture references. During her DNC speech, former first lady Michelle Obama declared “hope is making a comeback” and “something wonderfully magical is in the air.”
“We must be worthy of this moment. It is now our turn to do what generations before us have done, guided by optimism and faith,” Harris said in her nomination acceptance speech on Thursday, the final night of the DNC. She condemned former President Donald Trump, but ended on a positive note.
It’s a sharp contrast to Trump’s gloomier stance as the Republican presidential nominee. “I think that our country is, right now, in the most dangerous position it’s ever been in, from an economic standpoint, from a safety standpoint,” he said at an Aug. 8 press conference.
Beyoncé may not have made it to the DNC, but her music will be following Harris on the trail. Notably, the pop star performed the national anthem at Obama’s 2013 inauguration, so mayhbe Harris’s team is embracing “Obamacore” hope that we’ll see both of them together on an even bigger stage in January.
