Ariana Grande criticizes White House for using her music in ‘cruel, inhumane’ ICE video
Ariana Grande recently denounced the White House for incorporating her music into a video spotlighting the detainment of immigrants. The White House showcased a compilation of ICE officials handcuffing and detaining individuals, captioning it with “Bye-bye 👋 President Trump has delivered the most secure border in history,” set to the tune of Grande’s 2024 track, “Bye.” Grande expressed her disapproval on the post, stating, “Please do not use my music in relation to this barbaric, inhumane, heinous nonsense,” leading to the removal of the music from the video.
This incident with Grande is just one among a series of instances where artists have called out the White House for using their music, especially in conjunction with ICE-themed or pro-Trump content across social media platforms. Sabrina Carpenter labeled a video using her music as “evil and disgusting,” urging them to refrain from associating her music with their inhumane agenda. Jess Glynne conveyed feeling “sick” when the White House paired her song “Hold My Hand” with divisive memes, emphasizing that her music never aimed to breed division or hate. Furthermore, in October 2025, Donald Trump shared an AI-generated video featuring himself piloting a fighter jet and pouring brown liquid over protesters from the No Kings anti-Trump movement, accompanied by Kenny Loggins’ hit “Danger Zone.” Loggins promptly requested the removal of the video, denouncing any association of his music with divisive content.
All these occurrences, including the Grande incident, are part of a deliberate effort by the White House to provoke reactions from typically left-leaning artists as part of a strategic social media campaign. When questioned by Variety regarding the use of Taylor Swift’s music in a video in November 2025, the White House responded, “We made this video because we knew fake news media brands like Variety would breathlessly amplify them. Congrats, you got played.” SZA, another chart-topping R&B artist, denounced the White House’s tactic, denoting it as “PEAK DARK ..inhumanity +shock and awe tactics ..Evil n Boring.”
Meanwhile, Ariana Grande is gearing up for the release of her eighth studio album, “Petal,” scheduled to debut on July 31. Her lead single, “Hate That I Made You Love Me,” has skyrocketed to the top of the charts in both the UK and US within its initial week and is currently the most-streamed song worldwide on Spotify daily.