Sinéad O’Connor’s estate demands Donald Trump stop using her music

Donald Trump seems to be something of a showman. He certainly has a penchant for the stage, the lights, and a captive audience. However, despite his love for show business, ever since he became US President it doesn’t seem that showbiz loves him back.

The estate of the late Irish singer and songwriter Sinéad O’Connor has formally requested in early March that Donald Trump stop using her music during political rallies.

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The BBC reported that the Trump presidential campaign used the song ‘Nothing Compares 2 U’ during the 2024 Conservative Political Action Committee in National Harbor, Maryland.

The representatives of Sinéad O’Connor’s estate commented to BBC News that it was “no exaggeration to say that Sinéad would have been disgusted, hurt, and insulted” by Donald Trump using her music.

According to The Guardian, during the event Donald Trump told his supporters that: “Your victory will be our ultimate vindication, your liberty will be our ultimate reward and the unprecedented success of the United States of America will be my ultimate and absolute revenge”.

Sinéad O’Connor’s estate and her record label argue that this sentiment stands against her ideals of compassion, justice, and solidarity.

“Throughout her life, it is well known that Sinéad O’Connor lived by a fierce moral code defined by honesty, kindness, fairness, and decency towards her fellow human beings,” states a joint statement from O’Connor’s estate and her record label Chrysalis Records, as quoted by The Guardian.

“As the guardians of her legacy, we demand that Donald Trump and his associates desist from using her music immediately”, ends the press release cited by The Guardian.

Sinéad O’Connor passed away on July 26, 2023, at the age of 56. However, during her life, she was very critical of Donald Trump.

Music news website Pitchwork highlights that the Irish singer and songwriter referred to the former US President as ‘a Biblical devil’.

The estate of Sinéad O’Connor joins a long list of artists and performers, both alive and dead, that have protested the use of their music by Donald Trump that make the original Live-Aid seem like a school concert in comparison.

According to entertainment news website AV Club, Adele said no to The Donald after he wanted to use the theme music she composed for the James Bond movie ‘Skyfall’.

When the Trump campaign used ‘Here Comes The Sun’ by The Beatles during the 2016 Republican National Convention, the official Twitter account of the George Harrison estate called its use as “unauthorized” and “offensive”.

After Elton John’s representatives requested Trump to stop using ‘Rocket Man’ and ‘Tiny Dancer’. The British musician told The Guardian that while he met Trump and was very nice to him, he doesn’t want his music to be involved in US politics in any form.

The list goes on, including Mick Jagger (pictured), Phil Collins, Queen, Leonard Cohen, The Village People, Nickelback, and R.E.M. Most complaints weren’t related to politics, but simply for not asking permission and paying royalties for music use.

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The New York Times reported back in the 2017 that Donald Trump had a great challenge to find artists to perform for his White House inauguration. Who knows what musician will dare to sing for the not-so-new Commander-in-Chief, if he gets elected again. Maybe a karaoke night would be a better alternative?