Washington – The White House’s use of popular music to underscore its immigration policy continues to draw criticism from artists who object to their work being used to advance a political message. This week, singer-songwriter Sabrina Carpenter became the latest musician to publicly denounce the governance after a video promoting stricter deportation policies utilized her song “Juno” without her consent, prompting its removal. The incident follows a similar rebuke from Olivia Rodrigo last month regarding the use of her song “All-American Bitch” in an ICE promotional video.
The White House removed a video from its social media channels Friday after singer Sabrina Carpenter publicly objected to its use of her music. The video featured images of individuals being apprehended, set to Carpenter’s song “Juno.”
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“This video is evil and disgusting. Do not ever use me or my music to promote your inhumane agenda,” Carpenter wrote Tuesday on X (formerly Twitter) in response to the video, which was posted the same day by the White House. The incident underscores the growing trend of artists asserting control over how their work is used in political messaging.
The video initially showed protestors demonstrating against U.S. deportation policies before cutting to footage of law enforcement officers pursuing and handcuffing individuals alleged to be undocumented immigrants. The sequence was set to Carpenter’s 2024 hit, “Juno.”
By Friday, as Carpenter’s post garnered millions of views, the White House had taken down the video.
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On Tuesday, a White House spokesperson responded to Carpenter in a statement published by multiple news outlets. “Here’s a short and sweet message for Sabrina Carpenter: We will not apologize for removing dangerous criminals, illegal murderers, rapists and pedophiles from our country. Anyone who defends these monsters is either stupid or brain-dead.”
Carpenter has been incorporating a playful “arrest” element into her recent tour performances, playfully handcuffing audience members or celebrities with pink, plush handcuffs. The White House video used the lyric “Have you ever tried this one?” from “Juno,” which is repeated throughout the song. However, during Carpenter’s concerts, those same lyrics are used to reference different sexual positions, with the artist adopting a new pose for each performance.
This isn’t the first time the White House has faced criticism for using music without artists’ consent. In November, the White House also posted a video featuring Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) footage, set to Olivia Rodrigo’s 2023 song “All-American Bitch,” encouraging immigrants to voluntarily leave the United States. Rodrigo responded by writing, “Don’t use my songs to promote your racist and hateful propaganda.” The song was subsequently removed from the video.
With Lila Dussault, La Presse
