Young MC exits Freedom 250 concert series due to Trump call

Rapper Young MC decided to back out of the Freedom 250 concert series after learning of President Donald Trump’s connection to the event.

“I have informed my agents that I will not be participating in the Freedom 250 event,” the Young MC said on Instagram. “The artists were never informed of any political involvement in the event. Despite organizers’ claims that the event is nonpartisan, Spin magazine describes it as ‘backed by Trump.'” The rapper added, “I hope to perform in D.C. in the near future at an event that is not politically charged.”

Freedom 250 is a public-private partnership supported by the Trump administration designed to commemorate the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence.

The Young MC follows in the footsteps of Morris Day, who said Wednesday in his own Instagram post that he will not be performing at the Freedom 250 Festival. “Contrary to rumours, Morris Day & The Time will not be performing at the ‘Great American State Fair’,” the musician said after organizers of the “Freedom 250 Presents: Great American State Fair” festival included Morris Day and his band The Time in the official lineup announcement on X.

C+C Music Factory, which was also announced as part of the lineup for the June 25-July 10 show on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., appears to be weighing its options to perform at the festival. Frontman Freedom William, in a profanity-laced video posted to Instagram, insisted that he does not support or like Trump, and initially considered walking out of the festival after receiving word from his agent that he was in the lineup.

But C+C Music Factory then added that he might perform at the upcoming Freedom 250 festival after all, partly to show that angry commentators can’t tell them what to do. Other artists announced to be participating in the upcoming event include Martina McBride, Vanilla Ice, Milli Vanilli, The Commodores, Flo Rida and Bret Michaels.

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