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Adele to Rihanna – 16 A-list musicians who object to Donald Trump using their music at US election campaign events

From left: Pharrell Williams, Adele and Rihanna – three in a multitude of bands who have objected to Donald Trump playing their music. Photo: AFP, AP, EPA-EFE

From classic American rockers to British artists and even the estates of late music legends, here’s a look at some of the big names who have objected to Donald Trump using their songs at campaign events.

John Fogerty, Phil Collins, Bruce Springsteen

John Fogerty: "Confounding" that Trump campaign played "Fortunate Son" at rally

Some classic rockers object not only to Trump using their music, but point out the choice of songs is ironic or downright wrong. John Fogerty, who last week sent the campaign a cease-and-desist letter over the use of Fortunate Son by his band Creedence Clearwater Revival, said he was baffled by the use of a song that could have been written to slam Trump. Elsewhere Phil Collins sent the campaign a demand to stop using In the Air Tonight after it was played at an Iowa rally this month. Many observers say it was an odd song to choose given that the air among the mostly mask-less people at the rally could have been spreading coronavirus. And just as he had with Ronald Reagan in 1984, Bruce Springsteen objected in 2016 to Trump blasting out Born in the U.S.A. as a patriotic anthem, when it’s actually a scathing indictment of the treatment of Vietnam veterans.

Neil Young, Eddy Grant

Most musicians have stopped at legal threats, but a few have actually sued over the use of their songs. Neil Young filed a lawsuit in August over the Trump campaign’s use of his music including Rockin’ in the Free World, which he said he couldn’t bear to hear as a theme song for Trump (and which also paints an anything but jingoistic picture upon closer lyrical inspection). Eddy Grant sued Trump in September over the use of his 1980s hit Electric Avenue in a Trump campaign animated video that mocked his election opponent Joe Biden.

Leonard Cohen, Tom Petty, Prince

The heirs of dead artists have been as quick as living musicians in objecting to Trump’s use of songs. Tom Petty’s wife and daughters, who had been in legal squabbles over the management of his estate, came together to issue a statement in June denouncing Trump’s use of the rocker’s I Won’t Back Down at rallies. After Purple Rain was played at a Trump rally in Prince’s hometown of Minneapolis in 2019, the late singer’s estate publicly condemned the use of the song and said the campaign had previously agreed not to play it. The lawyers for the Leonard Cohen estate condemned the use of Hallelujah at the finale of the Republican National Convention (RNC), saying they had denied organisers’ permission.

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The Rolling Stones, The Beatles, Adele

Artists from the UK have been as vocal about their songs as their American counterparts. The Rolling Stones objected to You Can’t Always Get What You Want getting regular rotation at Trump rallies, threatening to sue in August and saying they had opted out of music licensing that allows campaigns to legally play songs. When the Beatles’ Here Comes the Sun was played at the 2016 RNC, the heirs of George Harrison, who wrote the song, called it “offensive and against the wishes of the George Harrison estate”. Adele made her objections clear when she learned her songs, Rolling in the Deep and Skyfall, were playing at Trump rallies.

Panic! At the Disco, Pharrell, Rihanna

Barbadian-born singer Rihanna poses at the 5th Annual Diamond Ball in New York in September 2019. Photo: EPA-EFE

It’s mostly Baby Boomer favourites who have objected to Trump’s use of their music, but younger artists have cried foul too, sometimes with foul language. Panic! At The Disco singer and songwriter Brendon Urie sent a profane tweet that ended with “you’re not invited, stop playing my song” in June after the Trump campaign played the hit High Hopes at a rally in Phoenix. Pharrell Williams sent a cease-and-desist letter after his song Happy was played at a Trump rally in 2018. He was especially angered that the event was hours after a mass shooting at a Pittsburgh synagogue. And Rihanna demanded that Trump stop playing Don’t Stop the Music after the song played at a 2018 rally.

R.E.M., Guns N’ Roses

Generation X bands have been as angry as anyone about the use of their tunes. The Trump campaign has played Losing My Religion, Everybody Hurts and It’s the End of the World as We Know It (And I Feel Fine) at rallies, to the outrage of the left-leaning members of R.E.M. “Please know that we do not condone the use of our music by this fraud and con man,” bassist Mike Mills tweeted in January. And Axl Rose has tweeted his annoyance at the songs of Guns N’ Roses, including Sweet Child O’ Mine, being used to entertain Trump rally-goers.

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This article originally appeared on Business Insider.

Donald Trump

From living legends like The Rolling Stones, Pharrell Williams, Neil Young and Bruce Springsteen, to the estates of late stars like The Beatles, Prince and Leonard Cohen, rafts of iconic acts have stood up and told the president to rethink his campaign soundtrack