Jewel Speaks Out About Her Performance at RFK Jr. Inauguration Event, Apologizes for Disappointing Longtime Fans (Exclusive)

Mar. 15, 2025

Jewel in December 2023; Robert F. Kennedy Jr. in June 2018.Photo:Taylor Hill/Getty; Cindy Ord/Getty

Taylor Hill/Getty; Cindy Ord/Getty

Jewelis speaking out on her decision to perform at an inauguration day ball honoringRobert F. Kennedy Jr., as she says her devotion to solving the country’s mental health crisis defies political party lines.

The singer-songwriter, 50, shared a video to Instagram on Friday, Jan. 24 defending her appearance at Kennedy’s “Make America Healthy Again” ball in Washington, D.C. four days earlier.

At the event, Jewel performed “Somewhere Over the Rainbow” for Kennedy, who is PresidentDonald Trump’s pick for secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services and who is a vocal vaccine skeptic.

“As many of you know, I am a mental health advocate. If there’s anything that I’ve learned in the past 20 years, it’s that mental health affects everybody’s lives across party lines,” she began her video. “I reached out to the last administration, spoke with the surgeon general about the mental health crisis that’s facing our nation. I don’t know if you guys know the stats, but it is bleak.”

Robert F. Kennedy Jr., President Trump’s nominee for Secretary of Health and Human Services and his wife, Cheryl Hines depart inauguration ceremonies in the Rotunda of the U.S. Capitol on January 20, 2025 in Washington, DC.Chip Somodevilla/Getty

Chip Somodevilla/Getty

Jewel went on to say that she believes there are things she can do to save lives, and therefore she feels the need to help.

“If I wait to try until I agree 100% with the people that might be willing to help me, I’d never get off the bench. I don’t think that’s how activism works, waiting until everything’s perfect enough to participate,” she said. “It’s actually… because things are so imperfect that we have to find ways to engage and to participate. And we have to act now. We cannot wait another four years.”

The Grammy winner said she thinks there are people in the new administration “that are willing to help on this issue,” even though “I do not agree on all the politics.”

“If I can help shape policy, make sure mental health is in the conversation… If I can help put resources or mental health tools into the hands of the most vulnerable who need it, I’m going to try and I’m going to fight,” she said. “And I understand that my words were overly simplistic. Half of our country feels hope right now, and I honor that. And half of our country feels disenfranchised and scared and vulnerable, and that is unacceptable.”

Duane Prokop/Getty Images for Wellness Your Way Festival

Jewel added that she was “so sorry” to any fans she caused pain, especially her LGBTQIA+ fans, whom she called “treasures.”

“I want to be a ray of light in this world. I try hard to be a ray of light in your lives,” added Jewel. “I know that in times of darkness we must grow light, and so I will wake up again tomorrow and try again. And I will count on each of you to do the same.”

The “You Were Meant for Me” singer is a longtime mental health advocate who has co-founded theInspiring Children Foundation, a nonprofit dedicated to transforming the lives of at-risk youth in Las Vegas through a holistic approach to physical, emotional and mental health, andInnerworld, a virtual reality-based wellness center that allows users to use anonymous avatars to access free mental health tools in a safe space.

“Accessibility is critical,” shetold PEOPLE in 2023. “We cannot let happiness be elitist. It cannot be just for the wealthy who can afford a therapist.”

The sentiments in her video seem to echo the bipartisan goals of Kennedy’s cousin, former Rep. Patrick Kennedy. In an interview withSemafor, Patrick said he hoped to build alliances within the Trump administration to help further his goals of reworking the country’s approach to mental health and addiction.

Jewel did not publicly endorse a candidate in the 2024 election, though she has advocated for various causes in D.C. over the years. In 2008, she testified before the Senate about youth homelessness, and also delivered a 12 million-signature-strong petition to Capitol Hill urging Congress to pass the Breast Cancer Patient Protection Act, according toPolitico.

source: people.com