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Rolling Stones warn Trump not to use their songs – or face legal action
The Rolling Stones have warned US President Donald Trump that he could face legal action if he continues using their songs at his campaign rallies.
A statement from the band’s legal team said it was working with the performing rights organisation, the BMI, to stop the unauthorised use of their music.
The Trump campaign used the song You Can’t Always Get What You Want at last week’s rally in Tulsa, Oklahoma.
The same song was used by the Trump campaign during the 2016 US election.
“The Rolling Stones do not endorse Donald Trump,” the band tweeted in 2016.
In a statement released on Saturday, representatives for the group said that “further steps to exclude” Mr Trump from using Rolling Stones material in future presidential campaigning was necessary after previous “cease and desist directives” had been ignored.
The BMI has reportedly notified the Trump campaign on behalf of the Stones that the use of their songs without permission will constitute a breach of its licensing agreement, and would be subject to legal action.
In April, the Rolling Stones – fronted by 76-year-old singer Sir Mick Jagger – released their first new single in eight years, Living In A Ghost Town.
Earlier this month, the family of rock musician Tom Petty issued a cease and desist letter to the Trump campaign over the unauthorised use of his song I Won’t Back Down at the Tulsa rally.
In a statement posted on Twitter, the family said that the late artist would “never want a song of his used for a campaign of hate”.
Petty died in 2017 of an accidental drug overdose after taking painkillers, aged 66.
Campaigning will continue in the coming months as Mr Trump prepares to face Democratic Party nominee Joe Biden in November’s presidential election.
2016
Donald Trump is pushing back on the Rolling Stones’ request that he refrain from using their songs on the campaign trail, saying that he and his campaign “have the rights to use them.”
“You know, we use so many songs,” Trump said in an interview with CNBC early Thursday. “We have the rights to use them. I always buy the rights.”
Trump, who regularly walks on stage at campaign events to hit Stones singles, was responding to the rock band’s statement Wednesday that they had never given his campaign permission to use their songs. In the letter to the campaign, the Stones “have requested they they cease all use immediately.”
8 politicians scolded by musicians over song use
When asked about the issue by CNBC, Trump made sure to note that he and his campaign “have no problem” with the band.
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“I didn’t see that,” he said of the Stones’ request. “Certainly I have no problem. I like Mick Jagger. I like their songs.”
At a Trump rally Thursday night, the Stones’ song, “You Can’t Always Get What You Want,” was played.
Political campaigns don’t need musicians’ express permission to use their songs on the trail, just as long as they obtain a blanket license under performing rights organizations like ASCAP or BMI. Some licensing associations, like BMI, can also make special exceptions for their artists and include provisions in artists’ contracts that would allow them to exclude certain songs from the license.
Campaign 2016
The Stones aren’t the only musicians prohibiting the Trump campaign from using their songs: pop singer Adele, Aerosmith’s Steven Tyler, and Neil Young have all objected to the campaign’s use of their music during political rallies.
In those cases, Trump’s campaign have honored the artists’ requests.