Céline Dion criticizes Donald Trump for “in no way authorized” use of the “Titanic” classic

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A strange choice.

Maybe a bizarrely fitting one.

Still an unauthorized selection.

Céline Dion’s team has released a statement on behalf of the Canadian icon saying that Donald Trump had no right to use her song “My Heart Will Go On” during a presidential campaign rally in Montana.

The use of her Oscar-winning song from the 1997 film Titanic is “in no way” authorized and Dion “does not endorse this or any similar use.”

The statement reads: “Today, Céline Dion’s management team and her record label, Sony Music Entertainment Canada Inc., became aware of the unauthorized use of the video, recording, musical performance and image of Céline Dion singing ‘My Heart Will Go On’ at a Donald Trump and JD Vance campaign rally in Montana. This use is not authorized in any way and Céline Dion does not endorse this or any similar use.”

The statement ended with the words: “…And really, THIS song?”

Once again, Trump and his campaign team seem little to no self-confidencewhen it comes to… well, culture.

Following the unauthorized use of the work of French artist Woodkid LGBTQ+ anthem last week – the irony has not escaped many – Trump has now used a song that was played in a film about a sinking ship …

While it may seem premature to describe Trump’s presidential campaign as a sinking ship, the apparent inattention can certainly be described as an epic tragedy.

This came after Dion made headlines last month with her return to live singing when she performed the Opening ceremony of the Olympic Games in Paris amidst their struggling with stiff-person syndrome (SPS). She sang “L’Hymne à l’amour” by Edith Piaf at the opening ceremony – her first concert appearance since she announced that she suffers from “a rare, progressive syndrome that affects the nervous system, particularly the brain and spinal cord,” according to the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke.

Dion is far from the first artist to object to Trump’s (misuse) of her songs for campaign purposes.

From Creedence Clearwater Revival to Tom Petty to Neil Young, the Rolling Stones and Adele, everyone has criticized Trump for using their songs without permission.

In other cases, Bruce Springsteen protested Trump’s loud rendition of “Born in the USA” as a patriotic anthem in 2016, when it is actually a scathing indictment of the treatment of Vietnam veterans (oh, again, the irony); Rihanna called on Trump to stop playing “Don’t Stop the Music” after the song was played at a rally in 2018; and REM were outraged that their tracks “Losing My Religion,” “Everybody Hurts,” and “It’s the End of the World as We Know It (And I Feel Fine)” were played at rallies.

In 2020, Leonard Cohen’s estate issued a statement criticizing Trump’s unauthorized use of Cohen’s “Hallelujah” at the Republican National Convention – after explicitly denying permission for its use. The estate added, rather brilliantly, that realistically they would only have considered approving Cohen’s song “You Want It Darker.”

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Earlier this year, Sinéad O’Connor’s heirs asked Trump to stop playing her 1990 hit “Nothing Compares 2 U” at his political rallies, stating: “It is well known that Sinéad O’Connor lived her life by a strict moral code of honesty, kindness, fairness and decency towards her fellow human beings. Therefore, we were outraged to learn that Donald Trump is using her iconic rendition of ‘Nothing Compares 2 U’ at his political rallies.”

Legally, US politicians have some leeway when it comes to this practice of arbitrary use of songs, which drives artists to despair.

In fact, U.S. politicians do not always need artists’ permission, as campaign teams can purchase licensing packages from music rights organizations that give them legal access to millions of songs for political rallies.

However, artists have the right to remove their music from this list.

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