Trump May Rally on National Mall as Freedom 250 Artists Drop Out
Most scheduled performers have withdrawn after saying they were misled about the event’s political ties, while Vanilla Ice and a few others remain committed.
- Multiple artists, including country star Martina McBride, rapper Young MC, and The Commodores, withdrew from the Trump-backed Freedom 250 concert series this week, citing concerns the event carried strong partisan political affiliations despite being billed as nonpartisan.
- Freedom 250 organizers originally pitched the two-week National Mall event as a nonpartisan celebration of America's 250th anniversary, but artists discovered the group's Trump administration ties only after agreeing to perform.
- McBride wrote on Instagram she was "presented with an opportunity to perform at a nonpartisan event but that turned out to be misleading." Poison frontman Bret Michaels similarly withdrew, stating the event "evolved into something much more divisive."
- President Donald Trump suggested Saturday he might replace the departing performers with his own rally on the National Mall, dismissing the musicians as "highly paid, Third Rate Artists" and claiming he could draw larger crowds than Elvis.
- Despite the backlash, rapper Vanilla Ice remains committed to performing, stating "music is made to bring people together," while Freedom 250 spokesperson Rachel Reisner said the organization "remains fully committed to delivering a once-in-a-lifetime experience.
23 Articles
23 Articles
'Idiocracy feels like a documentary': Trump event exposes scam playbook
Bulwark founder Sarah Longwell and writer Jonathan Last say President Donald Trump’s Freedom 250 debacle is unraveling fast as nearly all big names on the playlist have leapt from windows to avoid the Trump stain. But both agree that this kind of chaos and collapse is par for the course in Trump’s ‘Ideocracy-style’ style America.“[The artists] all said that the White House lied to them about what it was,” said Longwell. “... [T]hey tried to sell…
Trump–Sponsored Concert Performer Vanilla Ice Defends Freedom 250 Concert As More Acts Abandon 'Great American Fair' Amid Brutal Backlash
Nearly all of the musical performers have pulled out of the event, in what could be a death blow to the president's big plans to celebrate the nation's milestone birthday.
Vanilla Ice Defends Plans to Perform at Trump White House’s ‘Freedom 250’: ‘I’ll Go Play for Putin and I’ll Play in Iran if You Want’
Vanilla Ice still plans to play at the Trump-based Freedom 250 festival, saying 'music is not political' and that he would perform for Vladimir Putin if he had the chance.
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