Earnest, cheesy and explosive: Joe Biden's inauguration concert hit the right notes

At the "Celebrating America" inauguration concert special, some moments of awkwardness and cheese were saved by earnestness and fireworks.

Lady Gaga, Jennifer Lopez, Garth Brooks and poet Amanda Gorman all delivered memorable performances Wednesday at the Biden inauguration.

Shaped by unprecedented public health and security concerns, the inauguration of President Joe Biden was unlike any American president's before his.

Tom Hanks hosts Joe Biden's "Celebrating America" inauguration celebration on Jan.

Like the Emmys or New Year's Rockin' Eve or any other televised event of the COVID-19 era, "Celebrating America" was more a collection of segments than one cohesive event. It moved from one segment to the next quickly: a Bruce Springsteen performance, then a Tom Hanks missive, then Justin Timberlake and Ant Clemons, then Biden at the Lincoln Memorial, and so on.  .

Bruce Springsteen performs as part of Joe Biden's "Celebrating America" inauguration celebration on Jan.

In this image from video, Justin Timberlake performs during the Celebrating America event on Wednesday, Jan

(Biden Inaugural Committee via AP) ORG XMIT: CAPM313 (Photo: AP)

As a way to commemorate the arrival of a new president, "Celebrating America" was very different