Donald Trump has illegally used Titanic’s hit soundtrack at a campaign rally in Montana and Céline Dion is not having it!
On Friday, August 9th, a rally was held in Bozeman for Trump and his running mate J.D. Vance. During the event, a video played that featured Céline Dion’s performance of her 1997 hit My Heart Will Go On from the Titanic soundtrack (via NBC News).
Dion’s team took to her X account (formerly Twitter) on Saturday, August 10th to address the matter. They said that Dion’s management and record label Sony Music Entertainment Canada Inc. were made aware of the unauthorized use of her video, recording, performance and likeness at the Donald Trump/Vance rally. The statement stated that this usage was not authorized and clarified that Dion does not endorse this or any other similar uses.
It reads, “In no way is this use authorized, and Celine Dion does not endorse this or any similar use.”
The statement then finished with a question for the Trump campaign: “…And really, THAT song?”
This is not the first time Céline Dion has distanced herself from Donald Trump. She had previously declined his request to perform at his 2017 presidential inauguration. According to The Wrap, back then, Steve Wynn, a Las Vegas casino mogul, had promised Trump a performance by Céline Dion at his inauguration but she had promptly refused.
Trump has faced such pushback from musicians before. For instance, during his 2020 re-election campaign, John Fogerty of Creedence Clearwater Revival issued a cease-and-desist letter when Trump used their song Fortunate Son at campaign events, per Rolling Stone. He claimed that the song was written in protest of political and financial privileges which allowed some to avoid service or evade paying their fair share of taxes. He stated, “I was disgusted that some people were allowed to be excluded from serving our country because they had access to political and financial privilege.” He continued criticizing Donald Trump as an example who embodies those issues.
In 2020, Consequence of Sound reported that Phil Collins’ team also demanded that Trump’s campaign must stop using In The Air Tonight after it was played at a rally in Iowa.
Many other musicians and estates represented by their families have come out against President Donald Trump using their music. Bruce Springsteen did not want Born In The U.S.A. played during the 2016 election, Tom Petty’s family, Leonard Cohen’s estate, Neil Young, and The Rolling Stones did not allow Trump to use their songs like Celine Dion.
