What if you threw a concert series and three musicians showed up? I mean a big event. A series that is part of a larger national celebration. Well, that is the position that President Trump finds himself in today. All but three of the musicians that the administration had contracted with to perform at the Great American State Fair concerts, which run from June 25 to July 10, have canceled their appearances.
The concerts on the National Mall in Washington, DC, are part of the larger United States’ semiquincentennial, or 250th-anniversary celebration. Now, granted, this was not an austere lineup assembled by the Freedom 250 committee, the event organizing committee, for these concerts. They were mostly 1990s fan favorites, including some one-hit wonders. So why did all these musicians, independently, drop out of this event?
Original Concert Lineup for the Great American State Fair
So, who was originally supposed to perform at these concerts honoring the United States 250th anniversary? Here is the original showcard.
Martina McBride (June 25)
C+C Music Factory (June 26)
Milli Vanilli (June 26)
Vanilla Ice (June 26)
Young MC (June 26)
The Commodores (June 27)
Morris Day & The Time (June 27)
Flo Rida (July 2)
Bret Michaels (July 3)
Ah, a walk down memory lane. For all of you who came of age in the 90s, this would have been a nostalgic look back at your youth. Pay no mind to the fact that most of these acts haven’t had a hit record in 25 years, and that one of the performers was a fraudulent lip-syncher who got caught up in one of the biggest music scandals of all time. But it’s all intended to be good, clean American fun, just how our president likes it.
The description of the event is as follows: “The Great American State Fair will transform the National Mall into the biggest, boldest state fair in the country,” according to the group’s website. Scheduled attractions include concerts, a Ferris wheel, a carousel, and rodeo and livestock competitions. Sounds fun, right?
The Plan Goes South in a Hurry
What happened next was akin to an unstoppable snowball gaining speed as it rolls down a hill. First, Morris Day of Morris Day and The Time announced, “It’s A No For Me,” as he declined his invitation to perform a concert as part of the Fair. The next artist to drop was Young MC.
After that, the Commodores stated their intentions by announcing, “We will not be performing at the Great American State Fair. Our music has always been our voice, and we choose not to publicly affiliate with any single political party. “We support the betterment of all Americans.”
Yesterday, country singer Martina McBride and Bret Michaels, from the heavy metal band Poison, added their names to the dropout list. And Singer Jodie Rocco, one of the original studio vocalists behind Milli Vanilli with her twin sister Linda Rocco, has confirmed that they have not been asked to perform. However, the original living lip-syncher frontperson, Fab Morvan, has assured organizers that his concert will go on.
Besides Morvan, the only performers from the original lineup who are still participating are C+C Music Factory, Vanilla Ice, and Flo Rida. I sure wouldn’t want to miss those concerts. Ms. McBride best summed up the artists’ decisions not to perform at the Fair when she said.
“I asked lots of questions and was assured this was a nonpartisan event that was meant to celebrate ALL 50 states. Yesterday, things started changing, and what we were told is, in fact, not what is happening.” Freedom 250 has stated, “the initiative is nonpartisan and should be treated as such.”
Possible Concert Replacements
With all of these vacancies on their schedule, what artists could Freedom 250 bring in as replacements? First, there are the obvious choices: MAGA worshipers Kid Rock and Nicki Minaj would be at the top of the list. They both fit the obvious requirements of being washed-up musicians who haven’t had a hit in years. Maybe Trump worshipers, actors Scott Baio. James Woods, and Dean Cain could form an a cappella group to perform a concert.
And lastly, Secretary of Defense Pete Hegesh and FBI Director Kash Patel could perform a medley of drinking songs. They certainly have the experience to pull this one off. They could even have former Labor Secretary Linda Chavez-DeRemer join them. From all reports, she is an experienced day drinker.
