Credit: Far Out / John Mathew Smith / Trump Whitehouse Archives

Donald Trump banned from playing Isaac Hayes at rallies

Wed 4 September 2024 10:02, UK

The estate of the late Isaac Hayes are one of the many on the long list to have opposed Donald Trump’s use of their music during his political campaigning. The family of the late soul singer have filed a lawsuit seeking a permanent injunction to ban Trump’s use of his music.

For now, a judge has blocked Trump from using any of Hayes’ music during his 2024 presidential campaign. The ruling came from federal court judge Thomas Thrash in Atlanta, Georgia, and prevented the former president from using ‘Hold On, I’m Comin’, ‘ which was written by Hayes and David Porter. The track gained major success in 1966 when recorded and released by the soul duo Sam and Dave.

Trump had been using the track as his exit music during his current bid for the presidency, playing it after his speeches at rallies as he left the stage. The ruling doesn’t require his campaign team to delete any videos that feature the song from previous events, but it does prevent him from using the song during any upcoming appearances.

The ruling comes after the musician’s family have sought a permanent ban, filing a lawsuit against the former president. The current block will remain in place until the suit is resolved, with Hayes family hoping it will permanently protect the soul singer’s music from any connection to Trump.

Hayes’ son, Isaac Hayes III, praised the ruling. “We are very grateful and happy for the decision by Judge Thrash … I couldn’t ask for a better decision,” he told reporters. “I want this to serve as an opportunity for other artists to come forward that don’t want their music used by Donald Trump or other political entities.”

Artists rally against Trump

Hayes, who died in 2008, joins a long list of artists or artists’ estates that have taken a stand against Trump using their music. In recent weeks, Jack White threatened to sue Trump’s team for using his song ‘Seven Nation Army’, writing on social media, “Don’t even think about using my music you fascists. Lawsuit coming from my lawyers about this (to add to your 5 thousand others.)”

Other names that have taken a stand against Trump and his use of their music include ABBA, The Beatles, Foo Fighters, Leonard Cohen, R.E.M, Bruce Springsteen and many more.

Ronald Coleman, a Trump campaign lawyer, commented on the lawsuit raised by the Hayes family by claiming they were no longer using the song anyway.

“The campaign had already agreed to cease further use. We’re very gratified that the court recognized the First Amendment issues at stake and didn’t order a takedown of existing videos,” he said, as reported by the New York Times.