Jimmy Kimmel Pokes Fun at Trump’s Freedom 250 Festival After Multiple Acts Drop Out
What To Know
- Jimmy Kimmel mocked the Trump-organized Freedom 250 festival after numerous headlining acts dropped out.
- Kimmel highlighted the absurdity of the lineup, noting that several acts listed were either dead and not participating.
- Following Kimmel’s jokes, more artists—including Bret Michaels and Martina McBride—publicly withdrew.
Jimmy Kimmel had a great time poking fun at Freedom 250’s Great American State Fair on Thursday (May 28) after multiple headliners backed out of the festival.
“They’re also lining up entertainment for what they’re calling the Great American State Fair,” the late-night host said on Thursday’s Jimmy Kimmel Live!, referring to the 16-day event on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., organized by President Donald Trump‘s nonprofit.
Kimmel continued. “This is a big concert in Washington on July 4th to celebrate our 250 years. And what a lineup they have. This is like Coachella for bands that hired their cousin as their tour manager.”
The comedian then went through the line-up, which includes several acts that have since dropped out.
“The listed performers include pop duo Milli Vanilli, one of whom is dead. Pop duo C+C Music Factory, another of whom is dead,” Kimmel said. “Morris Day and The Time, minus lead singer Morris Day and minus The Time, they refused to be part of the event. Young MC, minus Young MC, who also refused to be part of the event. And The Commodores, minus the original singers from The Commodores and minus the new singers from The Commodores who backed out today, too.”
Kimmel told viewers not to worry because “Bret Michaels, Flo Rida, Vanilla Ice, and the guy from the Cracker Barrel logo tooting on the jug are in so far. We’ll check back on that tomorrow to see if they’re still in. What a mess.”
Well, just hours after Kimmel recorded his show, Michaels also pulled out of the concert. In a lengthy Instagram post, the former Celebrity Apprentice winner said the show was originally described to him as a “celebration of our country through music” but had evolved into something “much more divisive.”
Country music singer Martina McBride also backed out, writing on Instagram, “I was presented with the opportunity to perform at a nonpartisan event but that turned out to be misleading.”
Kimmel pointed out that Milli Vanilla put out a statement, saying they were never asked to perform and would not be taking part in the concert. The statement added, “Others using the name Milli Vanilli that appear on the advertisement should be considered a tribute band with no association vocally, musically to our sounds and songs.”
“How can someone pretend to be Milli Vanilli when Milli Vanilli was pretending to be Milli Vanilli?” Kimmel quipped, referring to the duo’s infamous mimed performances.
Summing up, Kimmel said, “What a concert this is going to be. Everything they do, they screw up. They cannot do anything!”
You can watch Kimmel’s full opening monologue in the video above and let us know your thoughts below.
Jimmy Kimmel Live!, Weeknights, 11:35/10:35c, ABC
Conversation11 Comments
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G
How did it feel getting picked as the living example of why Trump says he loves the uneducated?
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G
Aguest is a real p.o.s.
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J
Par for the course when it comes to Trump-related projects.
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A
Smile he’s got 2 1/2 more years to do more !
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B
Hope Trump is behind bars before Kimmel leaves
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A
Yeah you can Keep hoping. But maybe Kimmel will join Colbert in the unemployment office ! 🤣
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K
Only the best!
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A
I still wish he had commented on that AI video of Trump picking up Stephen Colbert and tossing him in the dumpster before then doing his "YMCA" "dance"! But maybe Kimmel didn't want to put any more negative publicity on his former competitor.
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A
Or better yet Kimmel didn’t have a good response. The Prez taking Colbert to the dumpster was/is pure gold !! Doing his dance was the cherry on the cake !! 😂
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K
Your comment's the icing on the top!
Your Ministry Of Disinformation should have invested in higher-quality English-language lessons…
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F
Hey Jimmy we get it, you don’t like Trump. Now get over it and move on.
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