Lady Gaga, Bruce Cohen appointed co-chairs of Biden's Committee on Arts and the Humanities

Pop icon Lady Gaga and movie producer Bruce Cohen have been chosen by US President Joe Biden to co-chair the President's Committee on the Arts and Humanities. In a press statement that featured a list of the committee's A-list members, including George Clooney and Kerry Washington, the White House announced the names on Thursday.

Over the years, Gaga has sided with President Biden and is well-known for singing the National Anthem at his inauguration in 2021. To raise awareness of the "It's On Us" campaign, which deals with the problem of sexual assault on college campuses, the pop star and the president teamed up in 2016.

US President personally appoints the committee's members

To "enhance federal support for the arts, humanities, and museum and library services," the President's Committee on the Arts and Humanities (PCAH) was established in 1982, during the presidency of Ronald Reagan. "Over the past 40 years, PCAH has catalyzed federal programs and played a vital role in the advancement of arts and humanities education, cultural diplomacy, and the creative economy," the statement by the White House read. 

The President personally appoints the committee's members. The "public" members "represent the heads of key federal agencies with a role in culture," while the "private" members include well-known artists, academics, and humanitarians.

First Lady of the US acts as an honorary chair

The First Lady of the US has historically held the position of an honorary chair. President Joe Biden reinstated the committee in September 2022 as former President Donald Trump didn't extend the executive order over the reinstatement of the committee in 2017. 

Bruce Cohen, the co-chair of Gaga, is an Oscar-winning producer who has worked on some of Hollywood's most well-known productions, such as Tim Burton's Big Fish (2003), Milk (2008), and American Beauty (1999).

"The President’s Committee on the Arts and the Humanities (PCAH) was founded in 1982 by Executive Order to advise the President on cultural policy," the White House statement said and added that the "PCAH advises the President and the heads of U.S. cultural agencies on policy, philanthropic and private sector engagement, and other efforts to enhance federal support for the arts, humanities, and museum and library services."

The list of the appointed individuals is as follows:

• Bruce Cohen, Co-Chair
• Lady Gaga, Co-Chair
• Jon Batiste, Member
• Constance M. Carroll, Member
• George Clooney, Member
• Philip J. Deloria, Member
• M. Angélica Garcia, Member
• Jennifer Garner, Member
• Nora Halpern, Member
• Steve Israel, Member
• Marta Kauffman, Member
• Ricky Kirshner, Member
• Troy Kotsur, Member
• Katie McGrath, Member
• Laura Penn, Member
• Amanda Phingbodhipakkiya, Member
• Arnold Rampersad, Member
• Shonda Rhimes, Member
• Kimberly Richter Shirley, Member
• Horacio Sierra, Member
• Anna Deavere Smith, Member
• Joe Walsh, Member
• Kerry Washington, Member
• Pauline Yu, Member