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Every deportation video looks eerily similar, masked agents, tear gas, and people shackled in lines, pushed toward vans bound for detention centers. In a disturbing attempt to make these raids look like slick police operations, some of these clips are even edited like movie trailers, complete with background music.This week, one such video has sparked outrage after using Olivia Rodrigo’s hit song “All-American B*tch" without her permission. The joint Instagram post by the White House and the Department of Homeland Security showed ICE officers tackling and deporting people, before cutting to a montage of supposed immigrants voluntarily boarding flights, smiling and giving thumbs up. The caption read, “LEAVE NOW and self-deport using the CBP Home app.
If you don’t, you will face the consequences.”
Rodrigo, who has been vocal about her opposition to Donald Trump, immediately called out the administration in the comments. “don’t ever use my songs to promote your racist, hateful propaganda,” she wrote. While the DHS has seemingly deleted her comment, fans of Rodrigo have shared her now-deleted message and praised her for speaking out. One user wrote, "This is what a spine looks like btw".
Another said, " admire Olivia for defending her work's integrity. Artists should control how their messages are used, especially when values clash so strongly."The move left many baffled as to why Trump’s team would use her music at all. Rodrigo has been openly critical of his administration’s immigration policies, even voicing her support for his 2024 opponent, Kamala Harris.Earlier this year, she used her platform to denounce ICE’s deportation raids, writing on Instagram, “I’ve lived in LA my whole life and I’m deeply upset about these violent deportations of my neighbors under the current administration.
LA simply wouldn’t exist without immigrants. Treating hardworking community members with such little respect, empathy, and due process is awful. I stand with the beautiful, diverse community of Los Angeles and with immigrants all across America.
I stand for our right to freedom of speech and freedom to protest.”The use of Rodrigo’s music in a video she clearly does not support raises a larger question,how much responsibility do artists bear when their work is repurposed to spread political messaging or propaganda? In an age where a song can be turned into a rallying cry or a soundtrack for state power within minutes, control over one’s art becomes both fragile and crucial.
English (US) ·