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This week, a federal judge finally put a stop to Donald Trump’s use of the late Isaac Hayes’ classic song Hold On, I’m Coming at his presidential campaign events. But this isn’t the first time the former president has faced legal trouble over his rallies’ musical selections.
Since his 2016 run for the White House, over a dozen fed-up musicians have spoken out about Trump using their music as the soundtrack for his presidential races, with the estate of Hayes being the latest to take legal action after repeated warnings.
Before them, Beyoncé issued a cease-and-desist order to the Trump campaign over the unauthorised use of her Freedom anthem, which is already Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris’ official campaign song. But the list goes on and on.
Céline Dion, ABBA, The Rolling Stones, Prince, Adele, Rihanna, the Foo Fighters, The Smiths, Sinéad O’Connor’s estate. From public statements to full-on lawsuits, many artists are drawing a line in the sand between their music and Trump — and with good reason.
As Hayes’ son, Isaac Hayes III, put it on social media: “Donald Trump represents the worst in honesty, integrity and class and [we] want no association with his campaign of hate and racism.”
Most artists seem to protest Trump’s unsanctioned music choices out of fear that their songs are being taken out of context or, worse, being seen as endorsements of what his controversial candidacy represents.
Throughout his tumultuous political career, Trump has openly embraced and incited violence, encouraged a mob of supporters to storm the U.S. Capitol after claiming the 2020 presidential election was “rigged,” has made racist remarks (even toward Harris recently), attacked several marginalised groups, made thousands of false claims and evaded accountability for his actions at nearly every turn. Not to mention that the 2024 Republican presidential nominee now wears the title of being a convicted felon. No wonder musicians don’t want their uplifting work associated with him.
After Sinéad O’Connor’s Nothing Compares 2 U was played at Trump’s Maryland and North Carolina rallies earlier this year, the late singer’s estate issued a fiery statement condemning its usage, saying in part: “It is no exaggeration to say that Sinéad would have been disgusted, hurt and insulted to have her work misrepresented in this way by someone who she herself referred to as a ‘biblical devil’.”
As history has shown, popular music soundtracking political events can evoke a powerful sense of excitement. Just look at Harris’ presidential campaign. From Beyoncé and Charli XCX to Megan Thee Stallion, the mere association with a music superstar has helped the vice president ascend to the top of political chatter among young, anxious voters. That same power seemingly alarms musicians when it comes to Trump.
All it takes is one viral instance to send the wrong message to the influential voting body — which reminds me of how 50 Cent’s Many Men (Wish Death) became an instant meme after the July assassination attempt on Trump’s life.
November’s contentious election has already been shrouded with worry and tension as concerned Americans anxiously wait to see who our next leader will be. Will it be a man who doesn’t know how to take no for an answer? Someone who doesn’t show basic respect, not even to the artists whose music he appears to be a fan of? Let’s hope that history doesn’t repeat itself for the sake of our futures.
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