Taylor Swift’s Music Removed from Trump TikTok Videos Amid Artist Backlash
Taylor Swift’s music has been removed from several videos on President Donald Trump’s Team Trump TikTok page. An edited video shared on August 3 showed the President and First Lady Melania Trump watching fireworks. The text on the video read, “mood because it’s August and Donald Trump is your president,” with a caption stating, “I’m sure @Taylor Swift is going to be super excited we used her song!” The video initially included Swift’s 2020 track “August” from her “Folklore” album. However, the audio is now absent.
In the comments, users celebrated the audio removal with messages like “TAYLOR REMOVING THE AUDIO QUEEEEEEN” and “Sorry, what was that? can’t hear the song.” Other Team Trump videos featuring Swift’s songs also now lack sound. This includes a November video using her “Life of a Showgirl” track “Father Figure” in a montage honoring the President. Attempts to reach the White House and Swift’s representatives for comment have been made by USA TODAY.
Trump’s Quip About Swift’s “Red” Album
Another video from August 6 also lost its audio. In this video, the Team Trump page humorously suggested that Taylor Swift’s “Red” album was an ode to Republicans. It displayed artwork mimicking the “Red” album cover, but with Trump in a red MAGA hat and the text “Red (Donald Trump’s version).” The video asked viewers if they were aware that Swift wrote an entire album about the Republican Party’s color.
Prior to these events, Swift endorsed former Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic frontrunner against Trump in the 2024 presidential election. Trump later expressed disdain on TruthSocial and criticized Swift. However, after Swift’s engagement to Travis Kelce in August 2025, Trump acknowledged their relationship positively.
Artists Pushing Back on Song Use
The Trump administration has faced criticism from various pop stars for using their songs without permission in social media posts. A notable incident involved a July 23 video showing U.S. military strikes in Iran with Katy Perry’s “Firework” as the soundtrack. Perry expressed outrage over the usage, stating her song is a message of hope and resilience, not war.
Ariana Grande was another artist who reacted strongly. In June, she objected to her song “Bye” being used in a White House TikTok video showing arrests by federal agents. Her comment and the audio were later removed.
Artists like Kesha, Olivia Rodrigo, Noah Kahan, and Sabrina Carpenter have also publicly condemned the White House for using their music in various videos without authorization. In a peculiar response to Kahan’s criticism, the Trump TikTok page posted a video indicating they would continue using Kahan’s music.