Musicians accuse Trump campaign of illegally using songs

Over the past nine years or so, some of our top recording artists have experienced similarly strange and uncomfortable moments. Presumably, this is an experience unique to their talent, and it seems to come as a mixture of emotions: pure fear and intense indignation, or the sadness of profound loss, and the malice that comes with betrayal or theft. It is in this moment that a handful of the most talented musicians of the past 50-plus years understand that Donald TrumpOr that his campaign, without permission, had excerpted their songs — in most cases among the musician’s greatest hits — to promote his presidential campaign.

Artists like REM, Guns N’ Roses, and Neil Young may find it incredulous that their deeply personal work, those profound lyrics, flawless music, and their explosive expressions, can be used to promote an agenda they vehemently oppose. All three artists, along with many others, have made headlines for denouncing Trump’s unauthorized use of their work in his 2016 and 2020 campaigns; REM threatened legal action against “45,” while Guns N’ Roses used their infringed cover of their hit song Wings to create Trump-related T-shirts with the words “Live and die with COVID 45.”

Now that the country is mired in the former president’s third run for president, and given the flood of tweets and statements condemning Trump’s use of many of the songs, the cease-and-desist notices being ignored, and the outrage surrounding the matter, one would think that Trump and his team would start carefully choosing the tunes they play to stir up or influence the emotions of his current and future supporters. But why should Trump and his staff bother? Until recently, no artist had filed a lawsuit against Trump and persisted in court, alleging that he used the songs without permission. That’s because, as attorney James Walker previously said, The Hollywood ReporterYet the hassle and high price tag of suing Trump is a major deterrent; most people don’t have the time or energy to take Trump to court — which has become a common reason for the former president to look the other way and allow his questionable business practices to continue.

That could all change next week, however, when Trump, his campaign and some of his supporters Facing Isaac Hayes III in Atlanta courtHayes is the first to file a lawsuit against the Trump team for frequent and unrepentant copyright infringement. To mark the occasion, Hip replacement A compilation of all the songs Trump has used in his 2024 campaign has been met with outrage from public domain artists or copyright holders.

The White Stripes – “Seven Nation Army”

“Oh…don’t you fascists use my music,” White posted On Instagram On Thursday, a Trump correspondent tweeted a video showing the candidate boarding a plane to White’s home state of Michigan. “My lawyers are going to be suing over this (plus five thousand more).” They never learn, do they? The whole situation echoes a similar use of “Seven Nation Army” in a Trump campaign ad in 2016. At the time, White and his record label released a line of merch that replaced “Icky Trump” with the band’s then-latest album, Disgusting bang bang.

Sinead O’Connor – “Nothing Compares 2 U”

After the Trump campaign played the song, which was written by Prince for his band The Family and later covered by the Irish singer-songwriter, at rallies in North Carolina and Maryland in March, the late singer’s estate and record label issued a joint statement condemning Trump’s use of O’Connor’s hit. “It is no exaggeration to say that Sinead is disgusted, heartbroken and insulted that her work has been misrepresented in this way by someone she herself calls a ‘Bible Devil,'” the statement read. “As guardians of her legacy, we demand that Donald Trump and his associates cease using her music immediately.” Ouch.

The Smiths – “Please, Please, Let Me Get What I Want”

Written to a waltz tempo, the Smiths’ gentle ballad was played to huge venues at Trump’s January rally in New Hampshire and soon turned up in South Dakota in 2023, shocking fans of the beloved 1980s Manchester band. But it was too much for Johnny Marr, who wrote the song and whose lyrics, crooned by frontman Morrissey, are both pointedly ironic and deeply sincere. “Ah… okay… okay. I never thought this would happen. Now turn this shit off,” Marr raps. Written on X Morrissey began tweeting about Trump’s use of the song, which was originally the B-side to an earlier hit single. Morrissey, whose political leanings have veered to the far right and he has praised the right-wing populist UK Independence Party and Reform Party leader Nigel Farage, has never publicly commented on Trump’s use of the classic song.

Celine Dion – “My Heart Will Go On”

At a rally in Montana in early August, a video showed Trump playing Dion’s iconic song Titanic The theme song was played, and the audience was moved to tears. Dion seemed in disbelief that after her amazing performance at the opening ceremony of the Paris Olympics, she took the time to make sure he heard it. Queen Celine’s ObjectionThe singer’s management and Sony Music Canada issued a joint statement saying, “This use is absolutely not authorized, and Celine Dion does not endorse this or any similar use,” they wrote, concluding with a quip: “Really… that song?” As they say, if you’re here for the Queen, you better not miss it.

Sam and Dave – “Hold on, I’ll be right there”

This 1966 classic could put an end to Team Trump’s reckless approach to copyright. “Hold On, I’m Comin'” was co-written by legendary singer Isaac Hayes in the 1960s. Now, the Hayes estate, led by his son, Isaac Hayes III, is suing the Trump campaign for using the Sam & Dave hit during rallies. The songwriter’s son says he counted the song at least 135 times over the years, and Team Trump never asked for permission or paid the estate to obtain the rights to the soul classic. Hayes told Hip replacement He was outraged at the 2022 National Rifle Association rally, held in the aftermath of the Uvalde school shooting that killed 19 children and two adults, when Trump ended his speech with the song while dancing. Hayes told Hip replacement This month. “Never, ever sing this song again.”

Foo Fighters – “My Heroes”

When Trump brought former independent candidate and bear cub corpse joker Robert Kennedy to the stage at his Arizona rally, Foo Fighters‘ favorite “My Hero” was playing in the stadium. When the news came through the transom, Dave Grohl and his companions responded with a curt “No”. There was some squabbling afterwards, when a representative of the Trump campaign claimed that the Republican candidate had acquired the rights to the song; he even Tweet The band used the Foo Fighters song: “These are times like these, facts matter, don’t pretend”, Steven Cheung wrote. However, the band had the last laugh as it announced that any increased royalties from using the song at the Arizona event would be donated to Kamala Harris’ campaign.

ABBA – “Money, Money, Money”

Just this week, Swedish superstar Abba People may feel the particular sting of the Trump campaign stealing a great work. But for the beloved band ABBA, they used multiple hits without permission—”Money, Money, Money,” which actually fits Trump well; “The Winner Takes it All”; and their most popular song, “Dancing Queen.” The band has issued an official statement and demanded a cease and desist; the band also demanded that the Trump campaign remove all videos featuring their hits from all platforms where they appear.

Beyoncé – “Freedom”

The powerful song has become synonymous with the 2020 protests that have rocked the country and helped raise awareness of racism following the killing of George Floyd by police, as well as the campaign of Harris, Trump’s Democratic rival, which sold out copies of the song. Use without permission This was said by top Trump campaign officials, but was immediately refuted and rebuked by everyone who saw what the Republican spokesperson tried to do but failed. These words followed: Stop it, wondering what this staffer was thinking, wondering when someone else in the Republican leader’s campaign team will do something so ridiculous again.