RESOLVING THE LEDGER
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Sure, it’s not uncommon for politicians to use popular songs at events and campaign rallies — but lots of artists have drawn the line when it comes to Donald Trump . Since the president began campaigning ahead of the 2016 election, some musicians have not been happy to hear that the Trump team has played their music, often without authorization. From Canadian singer Céline Dion to the family of soul icon Isaac Hayes , they’ve done everything from issuing public statements to sending cease-and-desist letters to Trump through lawyers.
When Trump took office for his second term, he and his administration have been using social media as part of their communication strategy. The propaganda-like, rage-bait-style clips often lean into internet culture and use popular music to make light of Trump’s most egregious actions, like his i mmigration policy and war-hungry foreign policy. As a result, several artists like Olivia Rodrigo , Katy Perry , and Ariana Grande , have vehemently spoken out against their music being used in these videos without their permission.
Here’s a list of the artists who have told Trump to back off and stop using their songs.
Taylor Swift didn't publicly comment when Trump's campaign team and the White House used her songs from her then-new release The Life of a Showgirl on their official TikTok pages in the fall of 2025. However, in August 2026, she joined Bad Bunny in quietly removing "August" from a video captioned with an overt provocation: "I’m sure Taylor Swift is going to be super excited we used her song." The superstar also seemed to remove the previously used tracks from a handful of videos that the Trump administration had posted. — M.G.
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