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Neil Young says he supports Bernie Sanders — and that Donald Trump shouldn’t have used his song “Rockin’ in the Free World.” He’s seen here performing in Los Angeles earlier this year.
Larry Busacca/Getty Images for NARAS
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Larry Busacca/Getty Images for NARAS
Neil Young says he supports Bernie Sanders — and that Donald Trump shouldn’t have used his song “Rockin’ in the Free World.” He’s seen here performing in Los Angeles earlier this year.
Larry Busacca/Getty Images for NARAS
When Donald Trump announced that he’s running for president Tuesday, the soundtrack at the Trump Tower event was Neil Young’s “Rockin’ in the Free World,” which was played loudly and repeatedly. But afterward, Young said Trump had used the song without permission – and that he’s a Bernie Sanders guy, anyway.
Young’s manager released a statement saying:
“Donald Trump was not authorized to use “Rockin’ In The Free World” in his presidential candidacy announcement. Neil Young, a Canadian citizen, is a supporter of Bernie Sanders for President of the United States of America.”
The Trump campaign says it used the song legally — through a licensing deal with ASCAP, the musicians’ copyright group. But as Rolling Stone notes, ASCAP’s rules are different for using music in a political message; they require a campaign to reach out to the song’s owners.
On today’s Morning Edition, Steve Inskeep and David Greene remind us that this isn’t the first time a politician has appropriated a song:
Steve: “Like Ronald Reagan, who used Bruce Springstreen’s “Born in the U.S.A.”
David: “Mitt Romney was threatened with legal action by the rapper K’Naan for using his song “Wavin’ Flag.”
Steve: “And The Dropkick Murphys were unhappy that Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker used their cover of “I’m Shipping Up to Boston.”
And let’s not forget Sarah Palin’s use of Heart’s “Barracuda” at the 2008 Republican National Convention. As with many of the songs named above, that song’s writers not only complained about the unauthorized usage — but what they called the irony of an anti-corporate or protest message being used to promote values with which they don’t agree.
If you missed Tuesday’s event, our pals at It’s All Politics have gathered The Best Moments From Donald Trump’s Announcement Speech.