Ariana Grande has strongly criticized the White House after officials used one of her songs in a social media video promoting the Trump administration's immigration policies, branding the move as “barbaric.”
The Controversial Video
The TikTok clip, shared on Monday, featured Grande's 2024 track Bye playing over footage of border agents handcuffing and detaining migrants. The post was captioned: “Bye-bye. President Trump has delivered the most secure border in history.”
The singer quickly made her feelings known in a comment beneath the post, which was reported by Variety. “Please do not ever use my music in relation to this barbaric, inhumane, heinous nonsense. F*** ICE,” Grande wrote.
Comment Visibility and Removal Efforts
By Friday morning, Grande's comment was no longer publicly visible. Her representatives confirmed to Variety that she had made the comment but noted that “for some reason it's not publicly visible.” A source close to the singer told Reuters that her team was exploring options to have the song removed from the video. The clip remains live on TikTok, although the audio has since been muted and now displays the message: “This sound isn't available.”
White House Response
Responding to the backlash, White House spokesperson Abigail Jackson defended the administration's position. She told US media: “We’ll say this one last time: what’s actually barbaric, inhumane, and heinous are the criminal illegal aliens who have injured and murdered innocent American citizens.” The reply appeared to be a pointed reference to Grande's 2014 single One Last Time.
The fallout comes days after President Donald Trump signed legislation allocating more than $70 billion (£52 billion) in additional funding for US immigration agencies during the remainder of his term. The White House video showed immigration officers placing people in handcuffs, escorting them into vehicles, and transporting them to detention facilities.
Artists Objecting to Use of Music
Grande is the latest musician to object to her work being used in connection with Trump's political messaging. Last year, Sabrina Carpenter condemned the use of her song Juno in a White House social media post highlighting Immigration and Customs Enforcement operations. The Espresso hitmaker commented: “Do not ever involve me or my music to benefit your inhumane agenda.”
A number of major artists, including ABBA, Céline Dion, and Beyoncé, also objected to the use of their music during Trump's 2024 presidential campaign, asking for their songs not to be played at rallies or campaign events.
The Standard has contacted Ariana Grande’s representative for comment.
