What's the latest on the Freedom 250 Great American State Fair? Trump steps in

Fernando Cervantes Jr., USA TODAYMon, June 1, 2026 at 7:29 PM UTC

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After several planned artists pulled out of the Great American State Fair over the weekend, President Donald Trump announced on May 30 that the musical performances were gone and the show would have a new headliner: himself.

In a Truth Social post on Saturday, Trump went on to criticize the musicians for getting what he called "the yips," and said that he was planning to organize instead what he called an "AMERICA IS BACK Rally."

Trump went on to say the change in lineup may be for the best, since he is "the Number One Attraction anywhere in the World" and "the man who gets much larger audiences than Elvis in his prime."

Among the latest cancellations were R&B group The Commodores and country music star Martina McBride, who said they were originally under the impression that the event would be entirely nonpartisan.

"That turned out to be misleading," McBride said May 28 in a statement posted on X.

The cancellations come as the Great American State Fair, a 16-day event organized by the president's nonprofit, Freedom 250, is set to be held between June 25 and July 10 at the National Mall in Washington, DC.

Here's the latest on the Great American State Fair.

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Who's in and out of the Great American State Fair?

Here are the performers who have called out:

Morris Day

Young MC

Milli Vanilli

The Commodores

Martina McBride

Bret Michaels

Workers continue to build the Freedom 250's Great American State Fair on the National Mall on May 28, 2026 in Washington, DC.

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)

Despite the cancellations, the group has teased that new artist names are set to be released in the near future.

What is the Great American State Fair?

The fair, set to run from June 25 through July 10, is being organized by Freedom 250, a nonprofit group Trump created to plan the semiquincentennial celebration. It’s among the many events planned by Freedom 250 for the Nation's Capital, including World Cup watch parties, an IndyCar race and an athletic competition for high schoolers.

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.

Contributing: Mike Snider, Saman Shafiq and Zachary Schemerle, USA TODAY

Fernando Cervantes Jr. is a trending news reporter for USA TODAY. Reach him at fernando.cervantes@usatodayco.com and follow him on X @fern_cerv_.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: What's the latest on the Freedom 250 State Fair? Trump stepping in

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