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Janelle Monae, Maxwell, Angelique Kidjo are performing at the Women’s March on Washington

Grimes, Questlove, Neko Case, Rakim, and Lila Downs will join the event’s artist table

Justin Carissimo
New York
Thursday 19 January 2017 01:18 GMT
Janelle Monae performs live on stage at 02 Academy Brixton on May 9, 2014 in London, England.
Janelle Monae performs live on stage at 02 Academy Brixton on May 9, 2014 in London, England. (Simone Joyner/Getty/WireImage)

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Janelle Monae, Maxwell, and Angelique Kidjo will headline the Women's March on Washington this weekend, organizers announced Wednesday.

Mary Chapin Carpenter, the Indigo Girls, MC Lyte, Samantha Ronson, Toshi Reagon, and Emily Wells are also scheduled to perform on Saturday.

"I am honored to join this critical movement to bring justice and equality to all," Monae said in a statement. "Music has always been a powerful tool for galvanizing unity and I believe that singing and standing together, our voices will be stronger than any force that tries to repress us."


Maxwell also issued a comment of his own, “We are here because women are every bit as capable if not more able to pursue any goal they set forth for themselves. Were it not for the limitless depths of their love we would not be the men that we are.”

Several artists including Grimes, Questlove, Neko Case, Rakim, and Lila Downs will join the event’s artist table, a committee of roughly 150 artists chaired by America Ferrera. The artists table will support sister marches across the country.

The march, which is expected to draw over 40,000 protesters, begins one day after Donald Trump is sworn into office. Organizers have previously clarified that the march is “pro-woman” rather than solely “anti-Trump.”

Last week, the group released a wide-ranging, five-page document explaining their demands, covering topics including reproductive rights, equal pay, police reform, racial justice, and economic policy.

Read the Women’s March on Washington platform in full here.

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