Iconic Singer’s Estate Warns Trump Never to Use His Song
The Daily Beast • • entertainment
Key Points:
- Leonard Cohen’s estate has objected to Donald Trump’s use of his song “Hallelujah” at the Freedom 250 rally in Washington, where Christopher Macchio performed the song despite the objection.
- Several artists, including Martina McBride and The Commodores, withdrew from the event after learning of its political nature, leaving a smaller lineup including Lee Greenwood, Macchio, Flo Rida, and Vanilla Ice.
- The Trump campaign has a history of unauthorized use of music, with past objections from Tom Petty’s family, Neil Young, and Sabrina Carpenter regarding their songs being used without permission.
- Tom Petty’s family explicitly condemned the use of his song at a Trump rally in 2020, emphasizing that Petty opposed racism and discrimination and would not support a campaign they described as hateful.
- Sabrina Carpenter publicly criticized the administration for using her music in an Immigration and Customs Enforcement video, calling the use “evil and disgusting” and rejecting any association with the administration’s agenda.
