“She was doing everything I was doing — but just like Ginger Rogers, it was backwards and in heels,” said President Barack Obama of his 2008 opponent — and current Democratic nominee — Hillary Clinton towards the end of the third night of the Democratic National Convention. His speech just added to the night’s musical flair: between appearances by Lenny Kravitz and Idina Menzel and the reemergence of President Obama’s signature campaign songs, it was a packed — and evocative — night.
Things got emotional early with a speech from Lee Daniels (The Butler, Empire) followed by a speech from Christine Leinonen, the mother of one of the victims of last month’s deadly shooting at an Orlando nightclub. A former Michigan state trooper, she recalled having to put her gun in a safe when she went into labor: “I’m glad common sense gun policy was in place the day he was born, but where was that common sense the day he died?”
Angela Bassett (who’s played Tina Turner, Katharine Jackson, and more) introduced two survivors of last year’s Charleston shooting — “I choose love, and I choose Hillary Clinton,” said one — who were followed by former congresswoman Gabby Gifford and her husband. “In Congress, I learned a powerful lesson: strong women get things done,” she said. She was played off by the band with a very smooth version of “Lift Every Voice and Sing.”
Next came the first musical interlude: a gathering of 35 or so Broadway performers including Idina Menzel, Debra Messing, and Kristen Bell singing 1965 hit “What the World Needs Now.” The all-star ensemble had previously covered the classic for a charity single to benefit the victims of the Orlando shootings earlier this year.
Not long after, Joe Biden took the stage to the “Rocky” theme (!). “Come on, we’re America!’ he ultimately concluded before walking offstage to a rendition of Obama campaign classic “Higher and Higher,” originally recorded by Jackie Wilson in 1967.
The “Our Fight Song” ensemble cast video aired for the third night in a row, featuring Rachel Platten and Mandy Moore among others, and then it was vice presidential nominee Tim Kaine’s turn. After walking out to the Temptations 1966 hit “Get Ready,” Kaine — something of a musician himself — kept returning to the refrain “Believe me,” a decision that had some hip-hop fans giggling.
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SFswqe0lhkI]
Obama wrapped the night, entering with the same song — U2’s “City of Blinding Lights” — he did when accepting the nomination in 2008. He kept things simple and eloquent as ever: “There has ever been anyone more qualified — not me, not Bill [Clinton], not anybody — more qualified to be president,” he said of Clinton, before giving her a big hug and leaving the stage to another one of his campaign favorites, Stevie Wonder’s “Signed, Sealed, Delivered.”
