Court ruling against song theft US stars are now turning off the music for Donald Trump
Donald Trump walks off stage to music after his campaign appearances - many stars want to prevent their works from being used. The first lawsuit has now been successful.
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- Music stars such as Céline Dion and Foo Fighters are annoyed that Donald Trump and the Republicans are using their music without permission.
- The Democrats and various stars, on the other hand, are joining forces. John Legend and Stevie Wonder, for example, performed at the Democratic Party conference.
- The heirs of Isaac Hayes filed a lawsuit over the use of "Hold On, I'm Coming" and were successful - Trump is no longer allowed to use the song.
The US election campaign is in full swing. The appearances of presidential candidates Kamala Harris and Donald Trump are often big events. And as it should be, music is also played at big events.
Harris and the Democrats get a lot of endorsements from music stars and team up with them. Harris' official campaign song is "Freedom" by Beyoncé. John Legend and Stevie Wonder, among others, performed at the Democrats' party conference.
Trump and the Republicans are finding it much harder to convince the stars. The Republicans play the music without permission. Some are annoyed by this. From Céline Dion to the Foo Fighters to the management of the late Sinéad O'Connor, they have all asked the Republicans not to use their music for the election campaign.
Céline Dion's management released a statement on X saying that Dion had not authorized the use of her work "My Heart Will Go On" during an event hosted by Trump and J.D. Vance. And ask at the end of the post: "... and exactly THIS song?" Alluding to the film adaptation of the Titanic tragedy, for which the song served as the soundtrack.
In the case of Sinéad O'Connor, the management says that the singer "lived by a moral code of honesty, kindness and fairness". She would have been disgusted that "her work was being twisted by someone she herself called a 'biblical devil'", writes "Deadline".
Court imposes injunction
An initial lawsuit has now been successful. The heirs of soul musician Isaac Hayes went to court when Trump left the stage several times at events with the song "Hold On, I'm Coming". Trump and the Republicans had not received permission to play the song and use it in videos, according to several media reports.
The presiding judge, Thomas Thrash Jr. of the court in Atlanta, Georgia, issued an injunction on Tuesday. This means that Trump and the Republicans may no longer use the song with immediate effect. A trial on back payments and damages is to follow.
Trump takes note of the decision
As "The New York Times" writes, those close to Isaac Hayes are relieved about the decision. "Donald Trump has now been told that he cannot use the song without a license, which was our biggest priority. Now we're moving forward with the lawsuit," says the Hayes heirs' lawyer, James L. Walker Jr.
According to Ronald Coleman, a lawyer for Trump, the presidential candidate has taken note of the decision and is happy that the videos with the song do not have to be removed.
Donald Trump's lawyersalso claim that the Hayes heirs no longer own the rights to "Hold On, I'm Coming". After the rights were sold several times, they were split between Universal Music Group Publishing and Warner Chappel Music Publishing.
