Vanilla Ice to Headline Trump-Linked July 4 Fair as Most Musicians Drop Out
Updated
Updated · The Atlantic · Jun 26
Vanilla Ice to Headline Trump-Linked July 4 Fair as Most Musicians Drop Out
3 articles · Updated · The Atlantic · Jun 26
Summary
Vanilla Ice is set to perform Friday at Washington’s Great American State Fair, becoming one of the few remaining marquee acts after multiple musicians quit over the event’s ties to Donald Trump.
The 58-year-old rapper said he accepted because entertainers should "just entertain," and he told outlets he would play for almost anyone, including politically controversial audiences.
The fair is part of Freedom 250, a Trump-backed public-private effort that diverted attention and funding from the bipartisan America250 commission created by Congress in 2016.
Martina McBride, the Commodores and others withdrew after saying the event was presented as nonpartisan but appeared politically aligned, leaving Vanilla Ice, Flo Rida and Freedom Williams still on the bill.
The booking underscores how the U.S. 250th celebration has split into rival productions, with a lower-profile Washington fair shadowed by a separate America250 concert in Los Angeles.