Gaga earlier tweeted about the occasion, underscoring the "great meaning" the transition between the Trump and Biden eras had for her personally.
The history of celebrities performing at inaugurations dates back to Franklin D Roosevelt's third inauguration in 1941, when a gala celebration the evening before saw performances from Irving Berlin, Mickey Rooney and Charlie Chaplin, says Lina Mann of the White House Historical Association. "Chaplin performed his monologue from The Great Dictator," Mann notes.
The celebrity component only increased over time, and one of the starriest inaugurations was that of John F Kennedy in 1961. That celebration, hosted by Frank Sinatra, drew Harry Belafonte, Nat King Cole, Ella Fitzgerald, Gene Kelly, Ethel Merman, Laurence Olivier, Sidney Poitier and other celebrities.
Fast forward to the first Barack Obama inauguration in 2009, where Aretha Franklin sang My Country, 'Tis of Thee at the swearing-in, and the new president and his wife, Michelle, were serenaded by Beyoncé singing At Last at an inaugural ball.
- Additional reporting, AP