Trump 250 concert lineup: Who's backing out and who's set to perform

Natassia Paloma, El Paso TimesFri, May 29, 2026 at 12:33 PM UTC

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Several musicians, including Martina McBride and Bret Michaels, have pulled out of Great American State Fair in July after learning about the event's affiliation with President Donald Trump.

The fair, running from June 25 through July 10, is being organized by Freedom 250, a nonprofit organization that Trump created to plan the celebration, according to USA TODAY.

"Freedom 250 is powered by our patriotic partners," the organization writes on its website, listing the White House and Department of War as partners, among several others.

The event will transform the National Mall into "the biggest, boldest state fair in the country," according to the group's website. Scheduled attractions include a Ferris wheel and carousel; rodeo and livestock competitions are also planned.

After learning about the connection with Trump, several artists took to social media to announce they would not attend, including Bret Michaels.

"Unfortunately, what was presented to us as a celebration of our country has evolved into something much more divisive than what I agreed to be a part of," Michaels wrote in an Instagram post.

The Commodores announced they're out as well, sharing the news in a May 28 Instagram post, "The Commodores will not be performing at the Great American State Fair."

Country musician Martina McBride later dropped out on May 28, writing on X that she was misled into believing she would be performing at a "non-partisan event."

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Here's what to know about who is out — and which artists will still be performing at the Great American State Fair.

Freedom 250 music lineup

Artists listed to perform at the Freedom 250 event, who have not yet commented, according to the group's post on X, so far include:

C+C Music Factory (June 26)

Vanilla Ice (June 26)

Flo Rida (July 2)

The organization's X post suggested additional names to come.

Freedom 250 artists backing out

Here is who has called off, according to USA TODAY.

Morris Day

Young MC

Milli Vanilli

The Commodores

Martina McBride

Bret Michaels

USA TODAY contributed to this story.

Natassia Paloma may be reached at npaloma@gannett.com, @NatassiaPaloma on x; natassia_paloma on Instagram, and Natassia Paloma Thompson on Facebook.

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This article originally appeared on El Paso Times: Artists, including Bret Michaels, back out of Trump-backed 250 concert

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