On Tuesday, singer Sabrina Carpenter attacked the White House for using one of her songs in a video showing immigration raids, and demanded that it not be involved in what she described as an “inhumane agenda.”
“This video is evil and disgusting,” Carpenter wrote on social media network X. “Never include me or my music in your inhumane agenda,” he added.
song used, Junoone of the two-time Grammy Award-winning artist’s most popular songs, expresses an extremely intense romantic and sexual desire for another person.
The White House used a clip with the phrase “Have you ever tried this?” To accompany photos of aggressive arrests by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents.
This is not the first time that Donald Trump’s administration has turned to viral songs to promote its policies, nor is it the first time that an artist has publicly distanced himself from the message.
Canadian children’s book publisher Kids Can Press posted a message along these lines after War Secretary Pete Hegseth shared on X an edited cover of “Franklin the Turtle” showing the character pointing a bazooka at some ships.
Hegseth later deleted the post. The name of this false rendition is: “Franklin confronts drug terrorists.”
After confirming that the turtle “represents kindness, empathy and inclusion,” the publisher stated: “We strongly condemn any defamatory, violent or unauthorized use of Franklin’s name or likeness, which is in direct contradiction to these values.”