Donald Trump Accused of Stealing Music

Donald Trump has once again been accused of stealing music during his presidential election campaign.

The former president, who is the GOP frontrunner and likely next White House leader according to the latest polls, attended the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) on February 24. As part of the last day of the event, Trump gave a speech in which he spoke on many issues surrounding the 2024 election. He also mocked President Joe Biden with an impression of him speaking to the press, which sparked laughter from the audience.

When Trump finished his speech, he thanked the crowd and danced to the 1966 song "Hold On, I'm Comin'" by the R&B duo Sam & Dave—and there is a strong chance he didn't receive permission to use the track. Newsweek contacted a spokesperson for Atlantic Records, which owns the rights to the song, and a Trump representative via email for comment Monday.

In a clip posted to X, formerly Twitter, by the account Republicans Against Trump, the businessman can be seen dancing and pointing out to the crowd. "What do you notice in this video of Trump at CPAC today?" the account captioned the post. At the time of writing, the post has been viewed more than 3.1 million times.

People took to the comments to share their frustration with Trump using the song. "I hope he gets sued for using the music," one person wrote on X.

"They're still copyright infringing?" posted another.

Not everyone was unimpressed, as others shared how much they admire Trump.

"He's got moves. Some say the best!" one X user posted, while another wrote: "This guy is so cool!" A third added: "He's a boss! What do you see?"

This isn't the first time that Trump has found himself in hot water when it comes to music usage. Footage was previously shared online of him using "Please Please Please Let Me Get What I Want" by the English rock band The Smiths at the South Dakota Republican Party rally in Rapid City on September 9, 2023.

The video was posted to X by Soorin Kimm, the 2024 campaign reporter for ABC, on January 24, 2024. "You actually hear the Smiths more often than you'd think at 2024 Trump rallies," she wrote in a post that has been viewed more than 9.4 million times.

On the same day the band's guitarist, Johnny Marr, reposted it and added: "Ahh...right...OK. I never in a million years would've thought this could come to pass. Consider this s*** shut right down right now."

Mike Burgess, an independent music-rights adviser with experience in U.K. copyright law, told Newsweek that Trump could face a lawsuit. He added that, while there are important and distinct differences between territories, Burgess said it may be possible for Johnny Marr and The Smiths to seek an injunction of some form in the U.S.

Burgess said that this could be done if it can be argued that repeated usage of the same song—or potentially The Smiths' catalog as a whole—is insinuating what is commonly known as "passing off." "I.e. that the public could interpret that Trump making use of the song is some form of approved association by the writers and performers of the song with Trump's campaign and/or political beliefs," Burgess said.

"Furthermore, Johnny Marr will have some form of moral rights under U.S. law, as we have in the U.K., which would also grant him some right to object to what he would argue is a derogatory use of his work.

"Such rights exist so that, if a party has a genuine objection to the use of their name, image or likeness, they can legally protest this and actions must be taken to prevent this from reoccurring," Burgess added.

This isn't the only time that Trump has found himself having to face the music because of his rallies. In May 2023, the disco group Village People sent Trump a cease-and-desist letter contesting a performance of their song "Macho Man" at the former president's Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida.