Jennifer Holliday Tearfully Recalls Receiving Death Threats After Agreeing to Perform for Donald Trump

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Dreamgirls
star Jennifer Holliday says she was called “the N word” and received death threats after she initially agreed to perform at Donald Trump’s inauguration.

The Tony-winning star appeared on ABC’s The View on Tuesday, and addressed the backlash she faced before pulling out of Friday's event -- less than 24 hours after news broke that she was part of the lineup.


NEWS: Jennifer Holliday Pulls Out of Inauguration Concert

“I woke up, and there was like, this whole thing of terrible tweets and things on my Instagram, and I was like, 'Oh, Lord, what did I do?'" Holliday shared. “I live a pretty reclusive life. You're not on the radio, and then one morning you wake up, and everyone hates you."

Holliday, 56, previously performed for Presidents Ronald Reagan, George H.W. Bush, Bill Clinton and George W. Bush. She explained that she initially agreed to add Trump to the list "because I'm an artist and I love America," and wanted to use her voice as an “instrument of healing and unity.”

The Broadway star changed her mind after realizing how much the LGBT community, who have long supported her, were “hurting and in pain.”


WATCH: Donald Trump’s Inauguration Concert Reveals Lineup

"Please know that I HEAR YOU and I feel your pain,” she wrote in a statement announcing she had cancelled the performance. “The LGBT community was mostly responsible for birthing my career, and I am deeply indebted to you. You have loved me faithfully and unconditionally, and for so many years you provided me with work even though my star had long since faded."

See more on the concert’s lineup in the video below.