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Indie singer Noah Kahan has publicly criticized the White House for using his song "American Cars" without permission in a social media post featuring President Donald Trump. The post, shared on Monday (July 27), included images and videos of President Trump during his visit to a General Motors facility in Milford, Michigan. The White House's Instagram post captioned, "Made in America is BACK," used Kahan's song as a backdrop, which the singer quickly condemned.
Kahan responded to the post by stating,
"Would never approve of my music being used in support of you or this administration."
The song, from Kahan's latest album "The Great Divide," was written for his sister and is not intended for political use. The audio has since been removed from the Instagram post.
The White House, when contacted, referred to a tweet by Kaelan Dorr, deputy assistant to the President, who commented, "Symptoms of TDS apparently include having a northern attitude," referencing another of Kahan's songs. This incident adds Kahan to a growing list of artists, including Katy Perry and Ariana Grande, who have protested the unauthorized use of their music by the Trump administration.
Perry recently criticized the use of her song "Firework" in a White House TikTok video showing military strikes, expressing her disapproval and stating that her music is meant to inspire hope, not accompany acts of violence. The ongoing issue highlights tensions between artists and the administration over the use of music for political purposes.