Overview
- A White House TikTok posted on Thursday, July 30, used Bad Bunny’s “La Mudanza” over images of President Trump and footage of Immigration and Customs Enforcement detaining people with on-screen text altered to praise Donald J. Trump and a caption reading “We’re making America great again.”
- Billboard and other outlets report the White House followed on Friday, July 31, with a second TikTok that used Drake’s “Hoe Phase” alongside helicopters, border and detention footage and a caption warning people who are in the country illegally that they will be sent home.
- The Bad Bunny clip prompted immediate and widespread social media backlash from fans and creators who objected to the song’s association with deportation footage while some supporters of the administration praised the posts.
- Representatives for Bad Bunny had not issued a public response as of August 1 and news outlets say they have contacted the artists’ camps and the White House for comment.
- News outlets note the videos fit a recent pattern of artists objecting to government use of their music and raise legal and ethical questions about licensing, political association, and whether more artists will seek removals or public objections.