Donald Trump Reportedly Had A Music Man That Played Show Tunes To Relax Him
Donald Trump's anger is pretty infamous. In fact, in 2017, The Washington Post cheekily shared links from three separate news outlets describing the then-president completely losing his mind, in varyingly flowery language. Back when Trump was still on Twitter, his favorite past-time seemed to be firing off a series of rage-filled tweets about whatever had made him mad at that precise moment in time. It usually didn't matter whether the source of Trump's ire was justified, or even logical. He just loved to rage.
As CNN reported around the same time, those who worked in close quarters with Trump, in the West Wing, were used to him freaking out and then settling down just moments later. However, despite how intimidating he could be, one staffer reasoned it was better to have Trump yelling than quiet, arguing, "If he doesn't get mad, it means he doesn't care." For those times when anger wasn't really an option, however, the former reality star had a dedicated staff-member to soothe him.
Broadway music soothed the savage president
According to The New York Times, in "I'll Take Your Questions Now," the upcoming tell-all book from former Trump staffer Stephanie Grisham, it's alleged that then-president Donald Trump's anger was so difficult to withstand, there was a protocol in place to actively control it. An unnamed White House official hilariously dubbed the "Music Man," who was personally chosen by Trump's handlers, was trotted out to play him his favorite, soothing show tunes. Included on the playlist was "Memory," the showstopper from "Cats" most recently handled by Jennifer Hudson in the movie adaptation. Although it seems like a fairly nutty solution, apparently it worked. Controlling Trump during his fits of rage was imperative, considering Grisham describes his anger as "terrifying."
In the book, the former White House press secretary admitted, "When I began to see how his temper wasn't just for shock value or the cameras, I began to regret my decision to go to the West Wing." Trump allegedly hated being told he couldn't do or say whatever he wanted, and frequently let rip at whoever had to remind him as such (though he usually acquiesced, according to Grisham, only to freak out again at a later stage). Although Trump's choice of soothing music might seem odd, as MSNBC noted, the former commander-in-chief is a long-time fan of musicals, even including "Music of the Night" from "Phantom of the Opera" and "Memory" itself in his campaign playlist when he was first running for office in 2016.