Fabrice "Fab" Morvan, one half of the former pop duo Milli Vanilli, has announced that he will perform at a series of concerts in Washington, D.C., marking the 250th anniversary of the United States, despite several other artists withdrawing.
«"I'm here to entertain and unite people, not divide them. Let's celebrate life and music and take a trip down memory lane," Morvan said in a statement to media outlets, including Rolling Stone.
Morvan is among several artists who have so far fulfilled their commitments to appear at the Great American State Fair concert series on Washington's National Mall, along with rappers Vanilla Ice and Flo Rida.
The concerts are being organized by a nonprofit group that organizes commemorative events in the US capital, though larger-scale events were made possible by a call from President Donald Trump. The program of events, scheduled for June 25 through July 10, was announced on Wednesday.
Soon after, several artists dropped out, including The Commodores, former band of singer Lionel Richie, country singer Martina McBride and Poison frontman Bret Michaels.
Artists said the event, which organizers described as nonpartisan, had become too politically charged.
«"Unfortunately, what was sold to us as a celebration of our country has turned into something far more controversial than what I agreed to participate in," Michaels wrote on Instagram.
The pop duo Milli Vanilli, formed by German music producer Frank Farian, rose to fame in the late 1980s. Their disco-pop hits "Girl You Know It's True" and "Blame It On The Rain" topped international charts before the duo became embroiled in one of music's biggest scandals.
The Grammy Award won by Robert "Rob" Pilatus and Morvan in 1990 was later revoked after it was discovered that they did not sing on their recordings, but merely lip-synched to the voices of other performers.
The singers whose voices were actually used on Milli Vanilli recordings—Jodi and Linda Rocco, Brad Howell, John Davis, and Charles Shaw—also distanced themselves from the Washington performance in a post on X.