Rapper Vanilla Ice, whose real name is Robert Van Winkle, says he “doesn’t get” why artists have canceled appearances in President Donald Trump’s “Great American State Fair” concert series at the National Mall honoring the nation’s 250th anniversary, arguing h
Vanilla Ice showed up on television with a grin and a simple question: why would anyone be offended by a party for America’s 250th birthday?
Appearing on Fox News Saturday on “Saturday in America” with host Kayleigh McEnany. the rapper said he doesn’t “get” the backlash surrounding his joining President Donald Trump’s upcoming “Great American State Fair” series of concerts celebrating the country’s anniversary. “It’s crazy that all the attention is coming down on all this event and everything because I’m honored and just super proud. ” Robert Van Winkle said.
Van Winkle said his support for the event is personal and broad. “My mom is proud and everybody I know is like. ‘This is awesome.’ And then there’s some people that are bailing out and all this stuff. ” he said. “And I’m like, ‘Why?’ You know, this will be the greatest concert on the planet. We’re turning 250 years. Let’s celebrate the country that we’re born and raised in.”.
He framed his stance as straightforward patriotism, and he challenged the logic he says others are using. “What’s wrong with being patriotic?. And they said, ‘Oh, because Trump’s putting it on,’” Van Winkle continued. “To recap. Trump launched mass deportations last year and enforced his immigration agenda to lethal results. overseen skyrocketing detentions of children and initiated an extremely unpopular war on Iran.”.
Van Winkle responded to that political history with the argument that whoever organizes the celebration is beside the point. “I’m like, ‘So who throws a better party than Trump?’” he said. “Man, I’ve been to a lot of them. That guy knows how to throw a real party and they’re classy. they’re great. they’re fun and just over the top — and amazing. So I’m like, ‘Even better.’ So I don’t get it.”.
The concerts are planned for the National Mall in Washington, D.C., and they are set to run for 16 days. The event is being curated by Freedom 250, a self-described “non-partisan organization” that Trump created by executive order.
The musical showcase is also tied to other politics-and-entertainment staging. Trump is set to hold an Ultimate Fighting Championship event in front of the White House as part of the same broader run-up.
That broader framing is part of what has fueled cancellations. Multiple artists who have dropped out of the concert series have said the event was presented to them as nonpartisan. Trump has responded with sharp remarks on his Truth Social platform. boasting that he might replace the departing “Third Rate ‘Artists’” himself.
Last week, Trump wrote that “the Number One Attraction anywhere in the World … who gets much larger audiences than Elvis in his prime” and is “the Greatest President In History (The GOAT!)” might take those artist seats with a speech. The official White House account on X amplified the message, posting, “AMERICA IS BACK Rally!”.
In Saturday’s interview. Van Winkle pushed back on the idea that joining the series amounts to endorsement. while also suggesting that the people opposing it are motivated by party feelings. “It’s like a DJ, you can throw it on for any wedding,” he told McEnany. “If [former President] Joe Biden is getting married, you can throw it on for him. I’m sure there’s fans over there on that side, too. It’s about coming together, it’s about being American.”.
As for the reason he thinks cancellations are happening. he said critics are “shaken up on their beliefs. politically. ” and that entertainers shouldn’t be “put on that kind of a pedestal.” In his telling. participation in a celebration doesn’t have to mean politics—yet the controversy suggests many other people are treating it that way anyway.
Vanilla Ice Robert Van Winkle Donald Trump Great American State Fair Freedom 250 National Mall 250th anniversary Truth Social White House Kayleigh McEnany Ultimate Fighting Championship mass deportations immigration agenda Iran war
Vanilla Ice just needs to mind his own business.
I mean it’s literally a birthday concert for the country right? Like people are offended over a grinning guy on TV? Seems kinda wild to cancel over politics only, unless he’s doing something else.
Wait so he’s saying Trump is throwing the best party… but wasn’t the whole thing about like the “250th anniversary” like the government? And why do they keep talking about deportations and Iran like that’s related to a fair concert? I get being mad, but this sounds like random excuses to me. Also I thought Vanilla Ice was older than he is lol.
Not gonna lie, I don’t trust any headline where someone says “doesn’t get” backlash. Like okay Robert, but if everyone else is bailing then there’s probably a reason, right? It kinda feels like he’s just trying to stay relevant. And the article kinda jumps around—250 years, kids detentions, war on Iran… like bruh those aren’t “beside the point.”