The Great American State Fair, a concert series concocted as part of Donald Trump's Freedom 250 programming celebrating 250 years of the United States, has been an object lesson about American entertainers' widespread desire to disassociate themselves from Trump. When the lineup first came out, it was amusing to see what amounted to an I Love The '90s Tour with a few other nostalgia acts sprinkled in, the sorts of past-their-prime performers who tend to play actual state fairs. The implication was that the only people willing to perform at Trump's soiree were washed-up opportunists desperate for a paycheck. Then even those folks started backing away.
Morris Day & The Time were the first to drop off the lineup, explaining that the event, which is essentially a Trump rally with a concert attached, had been pitched to them as a nonpartisan celebration of the USA. Young MC quickly made a similar announcement with a similar rationale. Eventually, the Commodores, Martina McBride, and Bret Michaels all pulled out too. Longtime Trump ally Vanilla Ice expressed his enthusiasm for the gig, while Flo Rida remained silent.
C+C Music Factory rapper Freedom Williams defended his involvement in a seven-minute toilet rant, while Milli Vanilli's Fab Morvan affirmed his own participation. But alternate factions from within those groups pushed back. In a statement, C+C co-founder Robert Clivilles said Williams "has done his best to steal, misrepresent and or misuse our name" and should be representing himself as a former collaborator with C+C rather than performing under the C+C banner. A group of performers billing themselves as the real Milli Vanilli, comprising Jodie Rocco, Linda Rocco, John Davis, and Charles Shaw, also issued a statement indicating Morvan, who famously got caught lip-synching, "should be considered a tribute band."
Those objections soon became moot. Morvan told CNN Monday he was dropping out of the "circus," noting that it was "not what I signed up for." Perhaps he changed his tune after Trump railed against the "third rate" performers and suggested the event should become a MAGA rally instead. C+C Music Factory is no longer part of the lineup either, so we can probably assume Williams was disinvited after repeatedly insulting Trump during his tirade on the toilet. That leaves just Flo Rida and Vanilla Ice, who reaffirmed his commitment to the show in a recent CBS News segment, saying he’ll perform for anyone, even Vladimir Putin.
A new CNN report out today reveals that most of the acts initially booked for the Great American State Fair share a booking agent: Jeff Epstein of Universal Attractions. Jeff Epstein?! The New York financier?? No, apparently this is a different Jeff Epstein. He also happens to represent Afroman, the only artist who could save this shitshow. He already has the wardrobe for it, just not the political affiliation.
