The Republican National Convention began in Cleveland, today (July 18). During the primetime hours, many speakers took the stage — among them Duck Dynasty’s Willie Robertson, Happy Days star Scott Baio, actor Antonio Sabato Jr., and former New York City mayor Rudy Giuliani.
The theme of the opening day of the convention was “Make America Safe Again,” with many speakers condemning both the Benghazi attack in 2012 and illegal immigration.
GOP Convention: Watch Speeches from Scott Baio, Antonio Sabato Jr. and More
In the last hour of the night, Donald Trump appeared to introduce his wife, Melania Trump, who spoke of why her husband is ready to be president. (And has been accused of plagiarizing Michelle Obama.)
Here are a few of the other notable musical happenings.
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1. The Turtles are not “Happy” with the Republicans.
The house band played “Happy Together” early in the day — a snippet of which could be heard at the beginning of PBS’ primetime coverage — and Turtles lead singer Howard Kaylan was not pleased. “We did not approve this use. Now we call the lawyers,” he tweeted.
2. The Prophets of Rage performed in protest outside of the convention.
The group, comprised of members of Rage Against the Machine, Public Enemy and Cypress Hill, protested the convention with a concert in Cleveland’s Public Square.
3. Rudy Giuliani left the stage to Van Morrison’s “Brown Eyed Girl.”
No word on how the Irish singer feels about this usage.
4. Donald Trump walked out to “We Are the Champions.”
Brian May has previously spoken out against Trump playing Queen‘s song during the campaign.
5. Did Melania Trump quote Rick Astley?
“He will never give up and most importantly he will never let you down,” Donald’s wife said of the presumptive Republican candidate. But more importantly, her speech sounded a lot like Michelle Obama’s speech from the Democratic National Convention in 2008.
6. Get ready for James Corden’s “Carpool Karaoke” with the First Lady.
A preview of Corden’s popular sketch was released, perhaps in counter programming to the night’s events. Michelle Obama sings “Single Ladies” in the snippet. The full segment will air on Wednesday (July 20).