Neil Young objects to Donald Trump using his songs at Mount Rushmore event: ‘This is NOT ok with me’
Neil Young has taken to Twitter to voice his objections to the Trump campaign using his songs at an event.
During his rally, held at the base of Mount Rushmore on Friday, US President Donald Trump played three of the rocker’s songs, to Young’s apparent irritation.
‘This is NOT ok with me,’ the 74-year-old tweeted from his official account, alongside a video of his 1989 hit Rockin’ in a Free World blaring out over the event’s speakers.
Not OK: Neil Young has taken to Twitter to voice his objections to the Trump campaign using his songs at an event
Later, the same Twitter account posted a video of Young’s song Like a Hurricane playing before Trump took the stage.
Again, the Canadian-born singer-songwriter objected, tweeting, ‘I stand in solidarity with the Lakota Sioux & this is NOT ok with me’.
The comment made reference to the Indigenous peoples in the area. It was considered sacred land, but when gold was discovered in the region they were forced off it.
Young’s song Cowgirl in the Sand was also heard at the event, according to Deadline.
Enraged: During his rally, held at the base of Mount Rushmore on Friday, US President Donald Trump played three of the rocker’s songs, to Young’s apparent irritation. Young seen here last year
Too far: Later, the same Twitter account posted a video of Young’s song Like a Hurricane playing before Trump took the stage
Young is far from the first musician to complain about the Trump campaign using their music.
Tom Petty’s estate issued Trump a formal cease and desist order for using his 1989 song I Won’t Back Down during his sparsely-attended Tulsa rally.
‘Both the late Tom Petty and his family firmly stand against racism and discrimination of any kind,’ the statement read.
‘Tom Petty would never want a song of his used for a campaign of hate. He liked to bring people together. We believe in America and we believe in democracy.
‘But Donald Trump is not representing the noble ideals of either. We would hate for fans that are marginalized by this administration to think we were complicit in this usage.’
Unpopular: Young is far from the first musician to complain about the Trump campaign using their music
A year ago, Ozzy and Sharon Osbourne demanded the 74-year-old reality star-turned-politician to stop using anymore of his music, including 1980 banger Crazy Train, for political ads or campaigns.
In 2018, Rihanna tweeted that neither she nor her people ‘would ever be at or around one of those tragic rallies’ after Trump played her 2008 hit Please Don’t Stop the Music.
That same day, Guns N’ Roses frontman Axl Rose tweeted that the twice-divorced father-of-five was a ‘s***bag’ for ignoring his ‘formal request’ to stop using Sweet Child ‘o Mine from 1987.
And Aerosmith has repeatedly sent cease and desist warnings to the former Democrat for using Dream On and Livin’ on the Edge at his rallies in 2015 and 2018.
Insult to injury: Young’s song Cowgirl in the Sand was also heard at the event, according to Deadline. Neil seen here in 2019