Taylor Swift's Lack of Response Highlighted After Sabrina Carpenter Shows How Easy It Is to Give an A+ Response to Trump Administration's Use of Your Music

On Tuesday, Sabrina Carpenter received widespread acclaim for her strong response after learning the Trump administration used her song Juno in a video showing ICE detaining people. The video was shared on the White Houses official social media earlier this week, leaving the singer appalled. She made her stance clear, tweeting directly at the account: this video is evil and disgusting. Do not ever involve me or my music to benefit your inhumane agenda.

Sabrina is not the first artist to push back against the unauthorized use of their music in political contexts. In 2020, Brendon Urie of Panic! At The Disco reacted strongly when the Trump campaign played his song High Hopes, writing, Stop playing my song. Youre not invited. Rihanna, in 2018, addressed the use of her song Dont Stop The Music at a Trump rally, stating she and her team would not participate in such events.

Olivia Rodrigo has also been vocal. In 2024, she removed her track Deja Vu from a Trump victory video, adding, Ew dont use my sound ever again ty. She reiterated her objection in 2025 when another song of hers was featured in a post endorsing ICE, tweeting, dont ever use my songs to promote your racist, hateful propaganda.

Many prominent musiciansincluding Adele, the Foo Fighters, and Beyonchave publicly opposed the Trump administrations use of their music, even inspiring a dedicated Wikipedia page. However, Taylor Swifts name is notably absent from this list, and Sabrina Carpenters recent statement has reignited discussion around her silence.

On November 3, the White House posted a TikTok featuring Taylor Swifts song The Fate Of Ophelia alongside images of Trump, using the lyrics to convey a pro-administration message. The video remains online, and Taylor has not publicly commented, which some fans and observers quickly noticed in contrast to Carpenters direct response.

Social media users highlighted this silence. One person commented, see @taylorswift13 its not hard to tell the shitty ass admin to not use ur music unless ur okay with it? Others referenced lyrics from her songs or noted, other artists speaking out when the Trump administration uses their music makes Taylor Swifts silence extra loud.

While many of Taylors fans criticize her inaction, some defend her, arguing that responding to such misuse might inadvertently give more attention to the administration. One viral comment summarized this perspective: And what did it accomplish besides giving this evil administration more attention? Quickly.

During Taylor Swifts brief political engagement in 2020, she publicly denounced Donald Trump and confirmed her Democratic affiliation in her documentary Miss Americana. Since then, she has largely refrained from commenting on political matters, though she did endorse Kamala Harris in the most recent election. Her political associations have come under scrutiny, especially due to her friendships with known MAGA supporters like Brittany Mahomes.

Author: Grace Ellison