US President Donald Trump will headline the “Great American State Fair,” after several musicians pulled out, the festivities’ organizers said on Saturday.
“I understand Artists are getting “the yips” having to do with their performance on Wednesday, 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!” Trump wrote on Truth Social on Saturday.
What happened to musical guests at 'America's state fair'?
On Wednesday, Freedom 250, an organization launched by Trump last year, announced that musical guests Bret Michaels, the Commodores, and Martina McBride would be among the artists performing on the National Mall from June 25 to July 10.
However, on Thursday, the three artists all dropped out separately.
"Independence Day" singer Martina McBride wrote that she believed that she was “presented with an opportunity to perform at a nonpartisan event, but that turned out to be misleading.”
Michaels posted in a statement that he thought that the show was a chance to “honor our veterans, active military, first responders, teachers and hardworking Americans from all walks of life.”
However, he stated that he later came to the conclusion that the event had “evolved into something much more divisive” and alluded to “threats that are completely unfounded and unforgivable.”
Later, Freedom 250 wrote that the organization was “excited to announce that President Trump will personally kick off this historic celebration on Wednesday, June 24.”
However, Trump later suggested that he could cancel the rally in retaliation for the singers who dropped out.
Trump slams singers who drop out of 'Great American State Fair'
“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,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.
Several other artists are still set to perform at the event, including Flo Rida, Fab Morvan of Milli Vanilli, and Vanilla Ice.
A representative for Vanilla Ice said that he was “proud to help celebrate America’s 250th Anniversary!”
“Everyone is welcome to attend and celebrate the USA’s Birthday and our Freedom!” the representative added in an email statement to the Associated Press.
Beyond musical performances, several other events are set to take place at the fair in Washington, including flyovers, military band performances, and family-friendly activities.