When Donald Trump announced his presidential candidacy at Trump Tower on Tuesday morning, he took the stage to the tune of Neil Young’s “Rockin’ in the Free World.”
The problem: Young is objecting to Trump’s use of his 1989 work. In fact, Young is endorsing a candidate on the other side of the political spectrum, Bernie Sanders.
“Donald Trump was not authorized to use ‘Rockin’ in the Free World’ in his presidential candidacy announcement,” said a statement from Young’s manager, Elliot Roberts of Lookout Management. “Neil Young, a Canadian citizen, is a supporter of Bernie Sanders for president of the United States of America.”
But Trump’s campaign says they did secure authorization, but they won’t use it again.
A Trump campaign spokeswoman said, “Through a license agreement with ASCAP, Mr. Trump’s campaign paid for and obtained the legal right to use Neil Young’s recording of ‘Rockin’ in the Free World’ at today’s event. Nevertheless, we won’t be using it again — there are plenty of songs to choose from. Despite Neil’s differing political views, Mr. Trump likes Neil very much.”
At his announcement, Trump tried to distinguish himself from a crowded GOP field.
But he’s joining a long line of Republican candidates who have stirred the ire of musicians objecting to their choice of music. In the last cycle, Steve Perry objected to Newt Gingrich’s use of “Don’t Stop Believin'” at campaign events, and Tom Petty objected to Michele Bachmann’s use of “American Girl.” In 2008 Jackson Browne sued over the use of his song “Running on Empty” in a pro-John McCain campaign video.
“Rockin’ in the Free World” debuted in 1989 as part of Young’s album “Freedom.”
Donald Trump running for president should be the source of many laughs. Hillary Clinton running for president should the source of many tears. They are both TERRIBLE candidates.
Neil Young should be ECSTATIC that anyone is playing one of his 2 “hits” culled over a lifetime of mediocre music.
4 decades of RED CHINA handover?
6 decades of MACY Group social engineering, franchise slums and mind control?
BEHOLD you “EYE—CONs’!
SHMUCKS
Neil Young is a old socialist Canadian goat. It’s a free country and Trump can use those words if he wants.
Neil’s cool..I always like his tunes…Donald is cool…I like his comb over and bonbastic attitude…they should get along famously..
Someone please use Neil Young’s new song against Monsanto and GMOs song.
and let’s not forget the ignorance of the reagan campaign, using bruce spiringsteen’s ‘born in the u.s.a.’ as their theme song, without even paying attention to the lyrics, which do not actually reflect well on the u.s. at all…
It happened to Obama twice: Both Cyndi Lauper and Sam Moore asked Democrats and the Obama campaign to stop using their songs, but not on philosophical grounds.
In the 2012 Obama campaign, Lauper’s “True Colors ” was used in commercials to go after Mitt Romney. Lauper, who supported Obama, was upset she was not asked for approval and stated, “Mr. Romney can discredit himself without the use of my work.”
During the 2008 campaign, Sam & Dave’s “Hold On! I’m Coming was used at Obama rallies. But Moore had not been consulted about its use.
Reblogged this on Universal Journal Review.
I predicted right away that Neil would object. A confirmed progressive, NY is as much as supporter of Trump as I am of driving the wrong way on Broadway. Egomaniac Trump will get no closer to the Oval Office than the Naked Cowboy. Notice that The Donald’s people hijacked Rockin in the Free World from ASCAP but seemingly never contacted Neil himself. Trump just assumed it was OK to appropriate someone’s IP. That about tells you his plans for the working citizens of the USA — fire first, ask questions later.