Published July 30th, 2026 - 10:55 GMT
ALBAWABA - Noah Kahan has joined the growing list of musicians who refuse to be connected with the Trump administration.On Monday, President Donald Trump and the official White House social media account commemorated his recent visit to the General Motors facility in Michigan with a carousel of photographs and video, one of which included Kahan's song "American Cars."“Nothing like American cars,” the White House captioned a TikTok video of Trump signing a Corvette at the facility.After some fans expressed concern over the use of Kahan's song to promote Trump's Michigan visit, the folk musician quickly reversed the decision.“Would never approve of my music being used in support of you or this administration,” the singer commented beneath Trump’s post.Noah Levine, Kahan's guitarist and co-writer on the track, also responded, writing, "You fat f---, this song isn't for you."Their posts clearly piqued the interest of the Trump administration, with Kaelan Dorr, deputy assistant to the President and White House deputy communications director, writing on X, "Symptoms of [Trump derangement syndrome] apparently include having a northern attitude," referring to another of Kahan's songs.Noah Kahan claps back at Trump's White House for using his music:"Would never approve of my music being used in support of you or this administration” pic.twitter.com/NgJ379YYQH— Headquarters (@HQNewsNow) July 29, 2026 American Cars has already been removed from Trump's Instagram post, but the TikTok post is still active as of writing.When Entertainment Weekly contacted the White House, it declined to comment further.With their posts, Kahan and Levine join a lengthy line of musicians who have publicly blasted the Trump administration for exploiting their music without permission. Katy Perry recently lashed back at the White House for using her 2010 song "Firework" in a social media video simulating military strikes in Iran.“I did not approve this, I was not asked, and I absolutely do not condone it,” Perry later wrote in a social media post. “I wrote this song to be an anthem of hope, healing, and inner strength for people going through their darkest personal moments. To see a message of self-worth and upliftment weaponized to soundtrack destruction and violence is a complete violation of everything my song stands for.”I am deeply appalled and angry to see “Firework” used on the @WhiteHouse TikTok account as a backing track for video footage of military strikes. I did not approve this, I was not asked, and I absolutely do not condone it. I wrote this song to be an anthem of hope, healing, and…— KATY PERRY (@katyperry) July 25, 2026 She concluded, “My music is for bringing people together, not celebrating warfare.”Aside from Kahan and Perry, artists including Olivia Rodrigo, Queen, Nickelback, Rihanna, R.E.M., Steven Tyler, Neil Young and many more have called for Trump to stop using their songs at rallies, events, and in social media posts.
