Rock bands and other artists can stop their music from being used at campaign rallies this election season, a music attorney has told Newsweek.
Larry Iser, Managing Partner at KHIKS law firm, has previously had to fight a battle for Talking Heads’ David Byrne and singer Jackson Browne to stop their music being used at Republican Party rallies.
Bruce Springsteen also stopped Donald Trump from using Born In The USA, while former Smiths guitarist, Johnny Marr, recently announced that he would stop Trump rallies from using the Smiths song Please, Please, Let Me Get What I Want.
Newsweek sought email comment from the Trump campaign on Saturday.
“The unauthorized use of songs during rallies or in political campaigns is extremely concerning to artists as it can be misconstrued as an artist’s support of a candidate and their positions,” Iser told Newsweek.
He said their lawyer should send a letter to the rally organizers warning them that it is “not ok to use the songs.”
“Artists should write to Broadcast Music, Inc. (BMI) or the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers to have them remove their song. They should also have their legal representatives send cease and desist letters to the political organizations, urging immediate action and thus, informing them of legal consequences should they not comply.”
“It is also worth publicizing such actions on social media, for public reach,” he said.
That’s what happened in January when former Smiths guitarist Johnny Marr shared one of the band’s songs being played at a Trump rally in South Dakota.
“Ahh…right…OK,” Marr wrote on X, formerly Twitter. “I never in a million years would’ve thought this could come to pass. Consider this s*** shut right down right now.”
The song was used at other Trump rallies in the previous months.
Acts including Adele, the Beatles, Bruce Springsteen, Queen, Elton John, the Rolling Stones, Pharrell Williams and the estates of Tom Petty, Prince and David Bowie have objected to Trump’s use of their music at rallies.
According to The Guardian, several acts, including the Rolling Stones, have sent cease and desist letters to Trump’s campaign to prevent Trump’s campaign playing their music.
The newspaper claimed that the Trump campaign continued to use music by some acts, including The Rolling Stones and Prince, after receiving cease and desist letters.
Iser said that artists should also “consider suing the campaign for right of publicity and false endorsement under the Lanham Act,” which is designed to stop intellectual property theft.
Iser represented singer/songwriter Jackson Browne in a lawsuit alleging that Republican presidential candidate, John McCain, infringed Browne’s copyright by using the song Running On Empty in a 2008 campaign commercial.
The case was settled on confidential financial terms and McCain made an apology.
He also represented Talking Heads lead singer David Byrne in a lawsuit against then-Florida Governor Charlie Crist for using the Talking Heads song Road To Nowhere in a 2010 commercial. The case was resolved with a confidential settlement and an apology.
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