As noted in LU’s morning headlines, blues legend B.B. King died Thursday in Las Vegas at age 89. According to the songwriter’s official website, he died peacefully in his sleep.
Naturally, when an American of such stature passes, Barack Obama weighs in, as he done so often, with a tribute on Twitter. And, as he has done so often, he memorializes the life of the man with a picture of … himself:
“There’s going to be one killer blues session in heaven tonight.” —President Obama on the passing of #BBKing pic.twitter.com/GD2yY6vymV
— Barack Obama (@BarackObama) May 15, 2015
But Obama didn’t stop with just a photo of his kisser crooning into a mike as King looked on. He also included the following in his his official statement on the musician’s contribution to American culture.
Three years ago, Michelle and I hosted a blues concert at the White House. I hadn’t expected that I’d be talked into singing a few lines of “Sweet Home Chicago” with B.B. by the end of the night, but that was the kind of effect his music had, and still does.
In fairness to Obama, this self-reverential tribute is tame compared with some of his more narcissistic moments. His eulogy to Sen. Daniel Inouye, for example, included 63 mentions of himself. Far and away his most egotistical send-off was his memorial to astronaut Neil Armstrong, which included the following:
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