ABBA joins growing list of artists against Trump's unauthorized music use

The Swedish pop group is citing that the campaign did not obtain permission to use their music.

ABBA is the latest artist to speak out against Donald Trump's unauthorized use of their music in his presidential campaign. The Swedish pop group has requested that Trump stop using their songs, citing that the campaign did not obtain permission or license to use their music.

According to a representative for ABBA told CNN that the group discovered that their music and videos were being used at a recent Trump rally without their knowledge or consent. The representative stated that ABBA and its label, Universal Music, have requested the removal and deletion of the content, but no request has been received from the Trump campaign.

This is not the first time Trump has faced backlash for using music without permission. Several artists have spoken out against Trump's use of their music, including Foo Fighters, Jack White, and Celine Dion. The Trump campaign has obtained licenses from performance rights organizations (PROs) such as BMI and ASCAP, but artists and songwriters have the right to approve or deny the use of their music in certain contexts.

Attorney Heidy Vaquerano, a music law expert, explained that if a song is used with video images, an additional license may be required. "The campaign would need to reach out to the respective songwriters of the musical composition through their publisher and the artist's record label for permission," Vaquerano said.

The feud between Trump and artists over music use has been ongoing for years. During his 2016 and 2020 campaigns, Trump used music from artists who did not support him, including Bruce Springsteen, Rihanna, and the Beatles. The estate of soul singer Isaac Hayes has even filed a copyright infringement suit against Trump for using his songs at rallies.