At least six artists who were slated to headline the “Great American State Fair” in Washington this summer have backed out or said they never signed on for the White House-backed event to commemorate the country’s 250th anniversary.
Performers Morris Day and The Time, rapper Young MC, Jodie Rocco of Milli Vanilli, country singer Martina McBride, The Commodores and former Poison frontman Bret Michaels have said they won’t attend the event.
The two-week event, put together by White House initiative Freedom 250, is scheduled to take place from June 25 to July 10 on the National Mall. The musical lineup was released Wednesday and met with sweeping criticism.
McBride said in a post on X on Thursday that she initially believed the Great American State Fair was a nonpartisan event but was told Wednesday that was not the case.
“I saw it as just a bigger version of so many state fairs I have performed at over the years … Sounds fun, right? Wholesome even,” McBride said in a statement. “Yesterday things started changing and what we were told is. in fact, not what is happening.”
She added, “It greatly upsets me that any fan who has been moved by my music may now feel like I’m abandoning the meaning behind those songs.”
Just hours after the lineup was unveiled on Wednesday, Morris Day said in a post on Instagram that “contrary to rumor,” the group will not perform at the event.
Young MC, whose 1989 hit “Bust A Move” topped the charts at the time, also announced that he would not be performing on the Mall.
“I HAVE INFORMED MY AGENTS THAT I WILL NOT BE PERFORMING AT THE FREEDOM 250 EVENT. The artists were never told about any political involvement with the event,” Young MC, citing media coverage describing the event as “Trump-backed.”
“I hope to perform in D.C. in the near future at an event that is not so politically charged,” he said.
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Clarissa-Jan Lim is a breaking news reporter for MS NOW. She was previously a senior reporter and editor at BuzzFeed News.
Carla Herreria is an editor for MS NOW’s breaking news and liveblog team. She was previously a senior assignment editor at celebrity.land.
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