Donald Trump has offered to perform at his Freedom 250 celebration at the Great American State Fair himself, after numerous acts have dropped out.
The event was announced earlier this week and is scheduled to take place at the National Mall in Washington DC between June 25 and July 10. Per an official listing, the “once-in-a-generation celebration” will “unite and showcase all 56 US states and territories in a single World’s Fair-scale event”.
Initially, the line-up included Vanilla Ice, Milli Vanilli, Flo Rida, Poison frontman Bret Michaels, The Commodores, Young MC, Morris Day & The Time, C+C Music Factory and more.
However, shortly after the announcement was made, Morris Day & The Time dropped out, saying he wouldn’t be performing despite the “rumour”, and adding: “It’s a no from me.”
Young MC promptly followed suit, writing on Instagram: “I HAVE INFORMED MY AGENTS THAT I WILL NOT BE PERFORMING AT THE FREEDOM 250 EVENT,” and claiming: “The artists were never told about any political involvement with the event.
Brett Michaels, The Commodores and Martina McBride have also since announced they will no longer be performing, with multiple artists saying they had been led to believe the event would be non-political, before it was publicly announced as being associated with Trump.
Trump has since responded with a lengthy rant posted to his Truth Social on Saturday (May 30). “I understand Artists are getting ‘the yips’ having to do with their performance on Wednesday, he wrote.
“So I am thinking about bringing the Number One Attraction anywhere in the World, the man who gets much larger audiences than Elvis in his prime, and he does so without a guitar, the man who loves our Country more than anyone else, and the man who some say is the Greatest President in History (THE GOAT!), DONALD J. TRUMP, to take the place of these highly paid, Third Rate ‘Artists,’ and give a major speech, rallying the Country forward like I have done ever since being President!”
He continued, “Two years ago, the United States was DEAD. Now we have the ‘HOTTEST’ Country anywhere in the World. I don’t want so-called ‘Artists’ that get paid far too much money, who aren’t happy. I only want to be surrounded by Happy People, Smart People, Successful People, and People that know how to WIN.
“So, by copy of this TRUTH, I am ordering my Representatives to look at the feasibility of doing an AMERICA IS BACK Rally on Wednesday, Washington, D.C., same time, same location. Only Great Patriots invited — It will be a Wild and Beautiful Celebration of America!”
Official Statement from The Real Milli Vanilli regarding @Freedom250 featured performances. pic.twitter.com/DCRcwgdk5t
— Milli Vanilli (@MilliVanilli) May 28, 2026
A group called Real Milli Vanilli also announced they would not be performing, issuing a statement which read: “Others using the name ‘Milli Vanilli’ that appear on the advertisement should be considered a tribute band with no association vocally or musically to our sound or songs.”
However, Fab Morvan, the remaining face of the group, has said he will be performing, telling Rolling Stone, “I am here to entertain and unite people, not divide them. Let’s celebrate life & music and take a trip down memory lane. I feel honored to be a part of the Great American State Fair as it will celebrate the 250-Year anniversary of America with so many other accomplished artists.”
He also shared his less-than-glowing thoughts on the final episode of The Late Show With Stephen Colbert, recently comparing the host to a “dead person” and throwing him into a bin in an AI-generated video.
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