Trump Tells Freedom 250 to Cancel After Artist Dropouts

After Martina McBride, Bret Michaels, Young MC and Morris Day and the Time pulled out of Freedom 250’s 16-day Great American State Fair in Washington, D.C., President Donald Trump urged organizers to “cancel” upcoming concerts. The festival has faced backlash

When Martina McBride announced she would not perform at Freedom 250’s Great American State Fair on June 25, it wasn’t just a calendar change—it added fuel to a growing fight over the festival’s message and connections.

On Saturday. May 30. President Donald Trump took to TruthSocial to tell organizers to “cancel” upcoming concerts due to artists dropping out. The 79-year-old president wrote that he was “thinking about bringing the Number One Attraction anywhere in the World. ” describing someone who “gets much larger audiences than Elvis in his prime. ” does it “without a guitar. ” “loves our Country more than anyone else. ” and has been dubbed “THE GOAT!” by “some.” Trump suggested that person—identified in his post as “DONALD J. TRUMP”—should “take the place of these highly paid. Third Rate ‘Artists. ’ and give a major speech. rallying the Country forward.”.

The backlash has already reshaped the lineup. Martina McBride. Bret Michaels. Young MC and Morris Day and the Time have all pulled out of scheduled shows at the 16-day festival in Washington. D.C. celebrating America’s 250th birthday. Their departures have been linked to Freedom 250’s connections to the Trump administration.

Freedom 250 describes its events as “nonpartisan,” but its website includes the White House and the Department of War among its “founding government members.” The festival also publicly lists multiple corporations with ties to Trump—including Palantir, UFC and Oracle—as sponsors.

McBride, 59, said she would not perform at the Great American State Fair on June 25. In a statement posted via Instagram on Thursday, May 28, she said she “was presented with an opportunity to perform at a nonpartisan event but that turned out to be misleading.”

Michaels, 63, said he was pushed out by threats that followed his involvement. In a statement posted via his website. he said. “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.” Michaels added that “Concerns have also been raised regarding the safety of my fans. band. crew. family and myself. including threats that are completely unfounded and unforgivable. ” and that “Because of that. I have made the difficult decision to step away from this performance.”.

Trump framed the Freedom 250 controversy through another high-profile dispute from his presidency. In the wake of the artist cancellations, he compared it to his troubled attempt to renovate and rename the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts.

On Friday. May 29. a judge ruled that Trump’s name should be removed from the Kennedy Center’s marquee and temporarily blocked a planned two-year closure for renovations. Trump later threatened to “transfer this failing Institution back” to the “Radical Left Democrats” to force them to take ownership of renovation costs and planning.

In his TruthSocial post, Trump urged more sweeping action. “We should have a giant MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN RALLY. for 250. instead of having overpriced singers. who nobody wants to hear. whose music is boring. and yet who do nothing but complain. ” he wrote. He then added. “Cancel it. just like I canceled my involvement with the failing and unsafe to be in Kennedy Center … The Kennedy Center is broken. unsafe. and $busted. and has been for many years!”.

Before Trump’s May 30 message. Freedom 250 spokesperson Julia Friedland addressed the festival’s claimed nonpartisanship during an appearance on DC News Now’s Sunrise on the Hill on Friday. May 29. When asked whether the events were truly nonpartisan. Friedland said. “I don’t think there’s anything partisan about America being around for 250 years … We have a history. obviously. but we have a president that wants to celebrate 250 years of America. ” adding. “And that’s exactly what we’re doing. And that’s how it was sold to performers.”.

Friedland said the festival would include “military bands. military ensembles. ” along with “representatives from every state and territory in the United States” to “come and represent their culture. what makes their state and territory unique.” She later insisted: “So it sold the same way to everyone that we’re celebrating America’s 250th birthday. We’ll have military bands, orchestras, talented performers. We will be announcing more in the coming weeks and days, and we will have something for everyone there.”.

Pressing further on whether artists were told about the White House’s involvement when they signed on. Friedland said. “I can’t speak to negotiations that were made for performers. But what I can say is we’re selling it the same way to every single person in this country. This is a celebration of America, 250 years, glorious years. It’s inherently nonpolitical.”.

Not every booked performance has been cancelled. Vanilla Ice and Fab Morvan of Milli Vanilli have both promoted their involvement via social media amid the backlash.

On Thursday, May 28, Vanilla Ice, 58, wrote via Instagram: “Happy birthday America 250 years. It’s gonna be an epic party.” He added, “This is to bring us all together. I’m tired of all the news channels dividing this country. We are all one.”

Taken together. the cancellations. Freedom 250’s self-described nonpartisan stance. and Trump’s demand to “cancel it” have turned what was sold as a broad celebration into a flashpoint—one that now spans both the Great American State Fair lineup and the legacy battle playing out at the John F. Kennedy Center.

Donald Trump Freedom 250 Great American State Fair Martina McBride Bret Michaels Young MC Morris Day and the Time Vanilla Ice Milli Vanilli Julia Friedland TruthSocial DC News Now John F. Kennedy Center