Carrie Underwood and Village People to perform at Trump ...

Carrie Underwood and the Village People have distanced themselves from Donald Trump as they faced backlash from liberal fans for agreeing to perform at his inauguration on Monday.

The acts will form part of a star-studded few days in Washington DC, where hundreds of thousands of supporters, fans and donors will gather to celebrate Mr Trump’s election victory.

Many of the city’s hotels have been fully booked since October, and Mr Trump’s inauguration team is turning away high-value donors offering cash for access to the most exclusive parties.

Underwood, who rose to fame in the 2005 series of American Idol, has accepted an invitation to sing “America the Beautiful” at the inauguration ceremony after Mr Trump and JD Vance, his vice-president, are sworn in.

After the announcement, she faced an online backlash from liberal fans who accused her of abandoning her position as an LGBTQ ally.

“So gross that you’re supporting Trump! History won’t forget,” wrote a fan under one of Underwood’s recent Instagram posts.

Another added: “Don’t ever call yourself an LGBTQ ally again, you’re supporting the man that wants to abolish LGBTQ rights, you should be ashamed.”

A source close to Underwood later distanced her from the incoming president, telling MailOnline that she was “doing it for America, not specifically for Trump”.

In her official statement, the singer made a coded reference to the divisive presidential election campaign last year, telling fans: “I am humbled to answer the call at a time when we must all come together in the spirit of unity and looking to the future.”

It came as the Village People, whose anthem “YMCA” has become an unofficial Trump theme song, said they would perform at an inauguration ball hosted by the Right-wing campaign group Turning Point on Sunday night.