Pause this playlist, Kamala Harris and Donald Trump.
Not even the future President of the United States has the authority to play any song he wants.
What they listen to in the comfort of the White House is, of course, their right. But as the 2024 election campaign heats up, those seeking the highest office in the land will need the appropriate licenses and permits to play an artist’s copyrighted music. Without these, presidential candidates could face untimely public condemnation from the artists and possible litigation.
Obtaining these permissions is not quite as easy as taking out a Spotify subscription.
Just as a politician may not listen to the music of an artist they are not a fan of, musicians may not want their work used by a political party they are not a member of.
In many cases, campaign organizers pay an annual fee to obtain a blanket license from collecting societies to reproduce or perform any work from a rights holder’s entire catalog.
“The campaign will only use it for live performances, meaning if they’re out there somewhere or in an arena, they’ll just play the song live, nobody’s recording it, there’s no simulcasting, no streaming, nothing like that,” said Kenneth Freundlich, a business, entertainment and intellectual property attorney. “It only affects one right.
“You don’t have to license the master recording of the song just for a live performance. So if you go to a concert, the venues themselves get what’s called a blanket license from the collecting societies.”
But even with that license, an artist or licensee can object, so campaign organizers often just press play and hope they don’t upset rights holders.
“Campaigns are based on asking for forgiveness rather than permission, especially when they’re not in the context of a TV commercial,” said Joel Sawyer, former communications director for South Carolina Gov. Mark Sanford. “When you play music at a live event, you’re like a college cover band: you just use the music and hope for the best.”
Trump has recently faced heavy criticism from artists after their songs were used at his campaign rallies. Celine Dion posted on social media that Trump used an unauthorized video of her singing her song “My Heart Will Go On” at his campaign rally in Montana.
“Today, Celine Dion’s management team and her record label, Sony Music Entertainment Canada Inc., became aware of the unauthorized use of the video, recording, musical performance and image of Celine Dion singing ‘My Heart Will Go On’ at a Donald Trump/JD Vance campaign rally in Montana,” a statement on Dion’s X-Account reads. “This use is not authorized in any way and Celine Dion does not endorse this or any similar use. … And really, THIS song?”
The family of late soul singer Isaac Hayes threatened Trump with legal action over the unauthorized use of the song “Hold On I’m Coming” at campaign events from 2022 to 2024.
“It’s just a matter of not wanting their music to be associated with the party,” Freundlich said. “Either they don’t agree with the political party and would rather go with the other party, or they’re just not political. They don’t want their songs thrown into the fray.”
Trump has received endorsements from musicians such as Kid Rock and Lee Greenwood, known for his patriotic anthem “God Bless the USA.”
However, artists do not always have control over how and when their music is played. Political campaigns obtain licenses from collecting societies such as ASCAP that allow them to use a wide range of songs from the catalogs of popular artists at live events. If an artist objects to the use, the song is removed from the license.
“If the artist has already gone to the PRO and told them to stop using it, your first step is a cease and desist letter from a lawyer. And sometimes that works. And in many cases it does,” Freundlich said. “Now once it’s been pulled, it’s technically copyright infringement for the campaign to continue using it.”
But not every campaign immediately complies with the rules, and there is a risk of incurring statutory damages of up to $150,000 for copyright infringement for each work used.
“It’s simply a campaign to exert public pressure,” Sawyer said. “When it’s a national figure that’s very divisive, when there are artists who don’t want their work associated with a polarizing figure, you’re going to see more and more of this kind of thing.”
“You put together a playlist, but you don’t want any unnecessary mistakes, do you? You don’t want stories like that to pop up in the middle of the campaign. So when you get the first letter saying to stop using it, the best course of action would be to stop using it.”
So which party has the better music catalogue to choose from for its election campaign playlist?
“I don’t think it’s wrong to say that the Democrats have had a little more luck than the Republicans in finding good, popular bands,” Sawyer said. “Kamala Harris has Beyoncé in one of her ads, for heaven’s sake. I mean, how are the Republicans supposed to compete?”
The Associated Press contributed to this article
