Trump considers dropping concerts in US capital after artists drop out

WASHINGTON - President Donald Trump said on Saturday he is considering cancelling a series of concerts commemorating the United States' 250th anniversary after a number of artists dropped out, and giving a speech instead.

On Friday, Bret Michaels, frontman of the rock group Poison, was the fifth musician to withdraw from the "Freedom 250" concerts, which are scheduled to take place from June 25 through July 10 on Washington's National Mall.

Trump said on Saturday on Truth Social he was considering giving a speech and rally and called himself "the Number One Attraction anywhere in the World, the man who gets much larger audiences than Elvis in his prime and he does so without a guitar."

(Reporting by David Shepardson; Editing by Nia Williams)

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This story was originally published May 30, 2026 at 9:28 AM.