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They saved the best till last... as Katy Perry closed the Celebrating America concert with a spectacular orchestral version of her signature song, Firework.

Standing at the foot of the Lincoln Memorial, the star was watched from the balcony of the White House by Joe and Jill Biden, as fireworks exploded around the Washington Monument.

It would, of course, have been improved if crowds had been there to see it as well. And, as today's celebrations come to a close, the socially distanced concert is a reminder of the work that lies ahead for the Biden administration.

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The mood of the Celebrating America concert was almost manically upbeat - determined to provide a sense of hope in a dark period of American history.

The song choices were all soaked in optimism, whether it was John Legend powering through Nina Simone's Feeling Good, or Demi Lovato strutting to Bill Withers' Lovely Day.

But perhaps the most on-the-nose message came from country stars Tim McGraw and Tyler Hubbard, of the band Florida Georgia Line.

"Look around and love somebody, we've been hateful long enough," sang the stars, performing live in Nashville. "Let the good Lord reunite us till this country that we love's undivided."

Hubbard explained that their duet, Undivided, had been written after his brush with Covid-19 last November.

"When I was in quarantine... I got to take a good hard look at myself. Inspired by my faith in God to reunite our country, I wrote this song."

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Justin Timberlake performed on the Celebrating America concert from Memphis, duetting with singer/songwriter Ant Clemons, on an uplifting, gospel-influenced song called Better Days.

While Timberlake is a household name, Clemons is more of a newcomer - who, just a few years ago, was working at the Red Lobster restaurant chain to fund his music career.

After moving to Los Angeles in early 2018, he started writing a song a day in exchange for a floor to sleep on. One of his demos made its way to Kanye West, who used it as the basis for his song All Mine, a top 20 hit in both the UK and US.

That led to a solo record deal, and a Grammy nomination for his debut EP, Happy 2 Be Here, which used the plot of Aladdin to illustrate his rags-to-riches story.

His collaboration with Timberlake was written and released last year, as an antidote to the misery of lockdown.

"We wanted to be a glimmer of hope," Clemons said. "And show someone this is the perspective you can take and miss the storm."

Inaugural CommitteeCopyright: Inaugural Committee

Cellist Yo-Yo Ma dedicated his performance on the Celebrating America concert to the ordinary people who had made the last year more bearable.

"We have been tested these last 10 months as individuals, families and communities," he said. "But in the midst of devastation and loss there were moments when the flickering light pointed us towards a brighter future. You brought us comfort, you sustained us, and so that light grew and became a bright beam in the universe."

"This is for all of you who found new ways for us to smile together," he added, before playing a pared-back but emotional version of Amazing Grace.

Previously, Bon Jovi's performance was introduced Anthony Gaskin, a parcel delivery driver in Virginia.

"Tonight I’m honoured to represent the many front-line workers across our nation who keep America going," he said, before handing over to Bon Jovi, who delivered a well-intentioned but inessential cover of The Beatles' Here Comes The Sun.

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Later tonight, the Foo Fighters will join the likes of Justin Timberlake, John Legend, Demi Lovato and Luis Fonsi at a televised concert marking Joe Biden's inauguration.

The band were asked to play one song - Times Like These, from their 2003 album One By One - and frontman Dave Grohl says the choice made "perfect sense, because of everything our country has been through".

"The song was written 18 years ago when I was at this crossroads in my life, questioning which way to go," he explains.

"And as terrifying as that can seem at times, it's necessary to be hopeful when you have to start again.

He continues: "This is a bit morbid - but whenever someone close to me has passed away, I've always found that you have to do everything in life once without them before you can move on. You have to learn to live again, you have to learn to love again.

"So there's optimism in the lyric and I think it's something that the world needs a lot of now.

"Change, as slowly as it may happen, is possible."

ReutersCopyright: Reuters

Jennifer Lopez also performed during the ceremony, just ahead of Biden's oath.

Lopez, who starred at last year's Super Bowl half-time show, is one of the best-known Latin-American stars in the US.

She sang a medley of This Land is Your Land and America the Beautiful - addressing the crowd in Spanish part way through her performance, declaring: "Una nación indivisible con libertad y justicia para todos" (one nation under God, indivisible with liberty and justice for all).

Somehow, she also managed to squeeze a line of her 1999 club smash, Let's Get Loud, into the performance - which was either a passionate demand for people to speak out against injustice or an exceptional piece of marketing, depending on your point of view.

Yesterday, the singer posted a video of herself with a few of the estimated 25,000 troops who are in Washington DC to secure the inauguration, together with the words: "Tomorrow I sing for you and all Americans."

ReutersCopyright: Reuters

With the exception of Ronald Reagan, country star Garth Brooks has played for every US president since Jimmy Carter.

Today, he added Joseph Biden to that list.

His emotional, a-capella rendition of Amazing Grace earlier offered a moment of sombre reflection after Biden's inaugural speech.

The musician, a staunch Republican, had joked before the ceremony that he "might be the only Republican at this place... But it’s about reaching across and loving one another."

He provided a moment of unity at the end of his performance, asking everyone at the Capitol, but also at home and at work, to join him for the final verse.

A short while ago, Amanda Gorman became the youngest poet to write and recite a piece at a US presidential inauguration.

Social media is ablaze with praise for the 22-year-old's stirring composition.

One reaction that caught Gorman's eye came from Lin-Manuel Miranda, the creator of the smash hit Broadway musical Hamilton.

If you missed it, you can watch Gorman's powerful reading of The Hill We Climb below.

ReutersCopyright: Reuters

By Lady Gaga's standards, it was a relatively low-key performance in Washington.

There were no dancers, no pyrotechnics and the only outrageous part of her outfit was the outsized golden brooch in the shape of a dove of peace (the colour matched her microphone and earpieces, lest you thought the whole ensemble was just thrown together).

That put the focus on her vocals, which were strong and assured, as she glided through the notoriously wide-ranging melody and its tricky vocal leaps.

Gaga, a vocal critic of the Trump administration, tweeted shortly before the ceremony that she wanted her performance to provide a moment of coming together after the divisions of the last four years.

"Singing our National Anthem for the American People is my honour," she wrote. "I will sing during a ceremony, a transition, a moment of change - between POTUS 45 and 46. For me, this has great meaning.

"My intention is to acknowledge our past, be healing for our present, and passionate for a future where we work together lovingly. I will sing to the hearts of all people who live on this land."