Donald Trump has stepped in to headline the forthcoming America 250 celebration after a string of musical acts withdrew from the event.

The US president, 79, is now set to take centre stage at the Great American State Fair on the National Mall after several artists pulled out of the Freedom 250-organised celebrations marking the 250th anniversary of the United States - with the Republican claiming performers had got "the yips" over appearing at the festival.

The festival, scheduled to run from 25 June to 10 July, was initially announced with a line-up including Martina McBride, Young MC, C and C Music Factory, Bret Michaels, The Commodores and Morris Day of Morris Day and The Time.

However, more than half of the acts later withdrew after learning of the event's connection to Trump and Freedom 250, the organisation established by executive order to coordinate anniversary celebrations.

Trump said in a post on Truth Social: "I understand Artists are getting 'the yips' having to do with their performance on Wednesday, so I am thinking about bringing the Number One Attraction anywhere in the World."

According to The Washington Post, Danielle Alvarez, an adviser for Freedom 250, confirmed Trump will now launch the opening event.

The president is expected to appear on 24 June, one day before Martina had been scheduled to perform.

Trump's administration has continued preparations for nationwide America 250 events, intended to commemorate the country's quarter millennium anniversary in 2026.

As artists distanced themselves from the festival, only Vanilla Ice, Milli Vanilli and Flo Rida remained from the original line-up.

In his Truth Social post on the artist withdrawals, Trump compared his popularity to one of music's most enduring icons.

He said he was "the man who gets much larger audiences than Elvis in his prime, and he does so without a guitar".

Trump also described himself as "the man who loves our Country more than anyone else, and the man who some say is the Greatest President in History (THE GOAT!)".

The president went on to suggest replacing the musical performances with a political rally.

He said he would "take the place of these highly paid, Third Rate 'Artists,' and give a major speech, rallying the Country forward like I have done ever since being President!"

Later, in a separate Truth Social post, Trump criticised the performers who had withdrawn from the event and argued the concert series should be scrapped altogether.

He said: "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."

Trump also referenced the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts while discussing the controversy.

He said: "Cancel it, just like I canceled my involvement with the failing and unsafe to be in Kennedy Center, because a Highly Conflicted, Crooked Federal Judge, said that I should not be allowed to spend my time and money in order to MAKE THE CENTER GREAT AGAIN, actually, far greater than it ever was before!"

Meanwhile, an anonymous senior administration official described the concert rollout to The New York Times as "a mess".