Chicago Throws a Party for the Obama Presidential Center’s Star-Studded Opening

It can’t be easy to follow a speech by a former president, so The Boss didn’t try to.

After former President Barack Obama finished a rousing oration on the mission of the just-opened Obama Presidential Center on Chicago’s South Side, Bruce Springsteen walked onto the stage with a somewhat sheepish look on his face. “Hi, I’m Bruce,” he told the crowd of a few hundred VIPs on the grounds of the center and several thousand at a public watch party a few blocks away.

He then launched into an acoustic performance of “Land of Hope and Dreams,” in keeping with the theme of the day. Speeches by Barack and Michelle Obama, Obama Foundation CEO Valerie Jarrett and others emphasized that the center, which opens to the public Friday, isn’t just about celebrating Barack Obama’s two terms as president, but rather highlighting the people who do the ground-level work of democracy and try to ensure the United States lives up to its ideals.

The former president even made a joke about it in his speech: “If you come [to the center] for a day and don’t have time to see everything, I would urge you to skip the clips of my speeches,” he said. “You’ve seen them all before.” Instead, he suggested that visitors pay attention to the stories of the community leaders and activists the center will spotlight.

Inside the center’s grounds, dignitaries (Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker, Rep. Nancy Pelosi and former German Chancellor Angela Merkel among them) and celebrities — including Oprah Winfrey, Stephen Colbert, David Letterman and Tyler Perry — joined the Obamas and former first couples Bill and Hillary Clinton, George W. and Laura Bush and Joe and Jill Biden. At the public viewing, the mood was more of a block party, with a DJ warming up the crowd before the event, food trucks and stalls for local businesses and nonprofit groups lining the sides of the Midway Plaisance.

Actress and activist Marsai Martin (Black-ish) served as a host for the public viewing, periodically chatting with members of the crowd during breaks from the main program.

“It’s a feeling that you can’t really describe. We’re very honored to be here,” said Myana Zhané, coordinator for a Chicago nonprofit called Sisters in Cinema that works with aspiring Black women and gender nonconforming media makers. The group had a booth at the public party. Zhané recalled that as a kid living in Indiana, her mom pulled her out of school to see Obama at a campaign stop. “I was like, ‘Why are we here?’ and she said, ‘This man is going to be somebody important one day.’ I’ve gotten to see the museum — it’s incredible. I cried, both of my friends cried. He’s done so much, and he continues to give hope to people, and it’s just incredible to see.”

After an opening set by The Roots, the day’s program kicked off with Chicago native Jennifer Hudson singing the National Anthem and “The Impossible Dream.” Christina Aguilera sang “What a Wonderful World” — which Jarrett, introducing her, said she had never performed in public before. Eddie Vedder and teenagers from a music nonprofit called Guitars Over Guns performed an original song they wrote together called “Better Believe.” John Legend sand Donny Hathaway’s “Someday We’ll All Be Free” and was the joined by Common and the United Voices of Chicago choir for “Glory.”

In addition to reiterating the center’s purpose, Michelle Obama sang her husband’s praises in a bracing speech, noting that “how absurd it is to imagine you might have done anything but make our family and this entire country proud. You made the hardest job in the world look like a walk in this beautiful park.” Both she and the former president showed some emotion during the speech. As he took the stage, Barack Obama quipped that “she did me wrong. She wouldn’t let me see her speech. She knew she was gonna mess me up, and she did.”

In between the Obamas’ speeches, Marc Anthony (“Vivir Mi Vida”), Nigerian singer Hems and Bono and The Edge of U2 (“City of Blinding Lights”) performed. After Springsteen performed, he introduced one of his “great heroes,” Stevie Wonder. The Motown legend closed the day by performing “All I Do” and “Signed, Sealed, Delivered,” then invited the other performers back on stage to join him on “Higher Ground” (the title of which the Obamas borrowed for their media company).

More photos from the event are below.