Trump has been playing Rihanna songs at rallies. ‘Not for much longer,’ singer says.
President Donald Trump has been hitting the campaign trail over the past few months, rallying supporters around the country to vote for conservatives in Tuesday’s midterm elections.
Similar to his events during the 2016 presidential campaign, Trump’s selection of music before and after the rallies has remained constant, most notably Lee Greenwood’s rendition of “God Bless the U.S.A.”
One singer, however, was less than thrilled to learn that the president had also been using her music without permission.
When R&B superstar Rihanna discovered that Trump had been playing her song “Please Don’t Stop the Music,” she had a pointed reply.
Not for much longer...me nor my people would ever be at or around one of those tragic rallies, so thanks for the heads up philip! https://t.co/dRgRi06GrJ
— Rihanna (@rihanna) November 5, 2018
It’s unclear if Rihanna planned to send Trump a cease-and-desist letter or what action she hoped to take against the president. HuffPost has reached out to Rihanna’s representatives for comment.
It’s not the first time Trump has run afoul of musicians, The Hill reported. Elton John, Axl Rose and Prince’s estate have all complained about Trump’s unauthorized use of their work. Just last week, Pharrell sent Trump a cease-and-desist letter for playing his song “Happy” at an event just hours after the deadly shooting at a Pittsburgh synagogue that left 11 people dead.
In recent weeks, Rihanna has used her massive social media following to rally supporters to vote, saying there was “no greater responsibility than being in control of your future.”
GOOD MORNING AMERICA☀️I don’t care what responsibilities you have today. There’s no greater responsibility than being in control of your future and it starts NOW!! REGISTER TO VOTE TODAY at https://t.co/k42TB6cvIZ & triple check that you are properly registered! Let’s go!! 💪🏿💪🏿💪🏿 pic.twitter.com/i0Tnwsjd9E
— Rihanna (@rihanna) October 9, 2018
She also urged her Instagram followers in Florida to elect Democrat Andrew Gillum to be the state’s next governor.
“If you’re tired of feeling like you don’t matter in the political process, know the most important thing you can do in supporting a candidate is finding someone who will take on critical issues such as: making minimum wage a livable wage, paying teachers what their (sic) worth, ensuring criminal justice reform, making healthcare a right, and repealing Stand Your Ground,” she wrote. “That’s a platform we MUST support.”
This article originally appeared on HuffPost.
