What To Know
- Donald Trump called for the cancellation of the Freedom 250 concert series after several artists dropped out.
- Trump suggested replacing the concert with an “AMERICA IS BACK Rally.”
- The artists who dropped out stated they were misled about the event’s nonpartisan nature, while some performers plan to participate despite the controversy.
President Donald Trump just called for the cancellation of the Freedom 250 concert series after several music artists dropped out of the celebration.
On Saturday, May 30, the POTUS, 79, took to Truth Social to address the concert series, which was scheduled to be part of the Great American State Fair from June 25 to July 10 on the National Mall in Washington, D.C. His comments came after Young MC, Commodores, Morris Day of Morris Day and The Time, Martina McBride, and Bret Michaels all backed out of the event.
“I understand Artists are getting ‘the yips’ having to do with their performance on Wednesday,” Trump 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!”
The president 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! President DONALD J. TRUMP.”
Although Freedom 250, a nonpartisan nonprofit, organized the Freedom 250 concert series, the private-public event is backed by Trump. This news prompted many of the artists to jump ship shortly after the lineup was announced.
“I will not be performing at the Great American Satte Fair on June 25th,” McBride explained in an Instagram post. “I was presented with an opportunity to perform at a nonpartisan event, but that turned out to be misleading.”
Similarly, Michaels explained via Instagram, “When this opportunity was originally presented to my team, it was described as a celebration of our country through music and a chance to honor our veterans, active military, first responders, teachers and hardworking Americans from all walks of life…. Unfortunately, what was presented to us as a celebration of our country has evolved into something much more divisive than what I agreed to be a part of.”
Young MC, Commodores, and Morris Day of Morris Day and The Time all shared similar statements. On the other hand, Fab Morvan of Milli Vanilli and Vanilla Ice have publicly indicated that they still plan to perform. It’s unclear, as of writing, whether their concerts will proceed as scheduled.
Meanwhile, late-night hosts like Jimmy Kimmel and Bill Maher have poked fun at both the lineup and the singers backing out.
What do you think of the Freedom 250 concert series?