Trump's Freedom 250 Concert Turns Into Rally With Tiny Spotify Tenor

Donald Trump's Freedom 250 concert series has gone from patriotic spectacular to political faceplant, with nearly every act bailing and President Trump replacing the whole thing with what he is calling a "Rally to End All Rallies."

The Commodores, Martina McBride, Morris Day and the Time, Bret Michaels, and Young MC all pulled away after questions about the event's Trump ties turned a supposed celebration into a booking-agent bonfire.

And in the most on-brand twist imaginable, one of the replacement performers is Christopher Macchio, an opera tenor with just 571 monthly Spotify listeners at the time of Trump's announcement.

The meltdown started in late May, when Freedom 250 organizers, led by Trump appointee Keith Krach, announced a lineup that included Martina McBride, Flo Rida, the Commodores, Milli Vanilli, and Vanilla Ice. The pitch was reportedly framed as a nonpartisan celebration of America's 250th birthday, but that branding did not survive the internet, the artists, or the political baggage attached to the Trump-backed organization.

Morris Day and the Time were among the first to distance themselves, with Day saying his listed appearance was only a "rumor." Young MC followed, saying he had been misled about the concert being nonpartisan. Bret Michaels and The Commodores then exited, with Michaels saying "what was presented to us as a celebration of our country has evolved into something much more divisive," while also citing safety concerns for fans and crew.

The key reveal came a few days later, when Trump himself posted on Truth Social: "We should have a giant MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN RALLY, for 250, instead of having overpriced singers, who nobody wants to hear, whose music is boring, and yet who do nothing but complain," before adding, "Cancel it." Shortly after, Fab Morvan of Milli Vanilli was also out, saying, "This is not what I signed up for" and calling the event a "circus," according to Variety.

Trump moved into damage-control mode days later, announcing a new Washington, D.C., rally for later in the month. Trump himself will headline the event, with Lee Greenwood, 83, introducing him and performing "God Bless the U.S.A." — a Trump rally fixture since 2016.

Greenwood's signature song was released in 1984, which is either comfort-food patriotism or the political equivalent of reheating leftovers. Christopher Macchio will also perform several songs, alongside the U.S. Army Band "Pershing's Own" and the Armed Forces Choir.

Macchio is not new to Trump's orbit. He sang "The Star-Spangled Banner" at Trump's inauguration and had just 571 monthly Spotify listeners at the time of Trump's announcement. Still, that figure became the kind of detail critics could not resist.

Using Macchio to perform songs the late Pavarotti made famous, including "Nessun Dorma," bypasses the long-running issue Trump faced when playing Pavarotti's recordings at his rallies.

Pavarotti's widow, Nicoletta Mantovani Pavarotti, and his daughters issued a statement back in 2016 saying that his "values of brotherhood and solidarity" were "entirely incompatible with the worldview offered by the candidate Donald Trump," citing his views on immigration.

The online reviews were, unsurprisingly, brutal. "America 250 is not about Trump. This is so egotistical," Jenna Ellis wrote, according to Newsweek. Matt Walsh added, "Replacing a concert with a speech is lame and boring."

Vanilla Ice, for his part, stayed notably unbothered. Asked about remaining on the bill earlier in the chaos, he told TMZ, "I don't even vote, so I don't even care."