The rockers did not give the former US president permission to use their track ‘My Hero’ while the former president’s team claim they have the right to use the music
Rock band the Foo Fighters has vowed to donate cash to US Vice President Kamala Harris’ election campaign after Donald Trump used one of their songs at a rally last week without their permission, according to a statement by the band’s representatives.
Last Friday, during an event in Glendale, Arizona, the Trump campaign played the track ‘My Hero’ to welcome Robert F Kennedy Jr., who reiterated his endorsement of the former president.
In a statement to USA Today on Sunday, a representative of the band said that they had not been asked by the Trump campaign for permission to use the song and that had they been “they would not have granted it.”
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The band also posted several messages on X reiterating that they did not allow Trump to use the song.
In a statement shared with The Independent news outlet, a spokesperson for the band stated that “appropriate actions are being taken” against the Trump campaign and that any royalties received as a result will be donated to the Harris campaign.
Meanwhile, Trump’s campaign has insisted that despite the band’s dismissal, it has a license to use the track during public events. The Independent has also stated that it has seen the documents “appearing to confirm that the campaign had indeed licensed the song from BMI’s Songview service.”
The Trump campaign’s spat with Foo Fighters comes after Celine Dion also had issues with the former president’s use of her song earlier this month during a rally in Montana. During the event, Trump’s team played Dion’s popular ‘My Heart Will Go On’ track from the ‘Titanic’ film.
“In no way is this use authorized, and Celine Dion does not endorse this or any similar use… And really, THAT song?” a statement shared on the singer’s Instagram page said.