{
  "id": 295149,
  "title": "Taylor Swift Appears to Block Trump From Using Her Song in TikTok Celebrating His Presidency",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/08/taylor-swift-appears-to-block-trump-from-using-her-song-in-tiktok",
  "topic": "culture",
  "section": "Culture",
  "published": "2026-08-08T05:33:32.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "TheWrap",
    "slug": "thewrap",
    "url": "https://www.thewrap.com/creative-content/music/taylor-swift-removes-august-audio-trump-tiktok/"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Donald Trump’s team attempted to use Taylor Swift’s song “August” in a TikTok celebrating his presidency, but the artist seemingly thwarted their plans. The Team Trump account shared a video of President Trump and First Lady Melania Trump admiring fireworks, with text overlaying the image stating, “Mood because it’s August and Donald Trump is your president.” However, the post was met with a subtle counterattack from Swift, who muted the audio of the song, prompting TikTok to display the message, “The copyright owner hasn’t made this sound available in your country.” Swift’s followers quickly caught wind of the action, with comments praising her for removing the song. In response, Trump’s team launched another TikTok, this time featuring her song “Red,” which they claimed was written for the Republican Party. They altered several of Swift’s song titles to tout the conservative agenda, such as changing “Everything Has Changed” to “Everything Has Changed (At Our Southern Border).” This is not the first instance of Trump targeting Swift, as he has previously commented on her appearance and political affiliations. Swift and her representatives have not yet commented on the latest incident.",
  "summary": "“I’m sure Taylor Swift is going to be super excited we used her song,” the president’s caption reads The post Taylor Swift Appears to Block Trump From Using Her Song in TikTok Celebrating His Presidency appeared first on TheWrap .",
  "key_points": [
    "Trump's team tried to use Swift's \"August\" in TikTok celebrating his presidency.",
    "Swift muted song audio, blocking Trump's use of her music.",
    "Trump's team used \"Red\" instead, claiming it was for Republican Party."
  ],
  "editors_take": "Taylor Swift's actions suggest she will not permit her music to be co-opted by Trump's team, potentially limiting their ability to use her songs in their online campaigns.",
  "illustration": "https://urgent.news/ill/295149.png",
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 5,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "Consequence",
        "title": "Taylor Swift Blocks Trump from Using Her Music on TikTok",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/08/taylor-swift-blocks-trump-from-using-her-music-on-tiktok",
        "published": "2026-08-08T04:46:06.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "Variety",
        "title": "Taylor Swift Song ‘August’ Removed From Trump TikTok Video",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/08/taylor-swift-song-august-removed-from-trump-tiktok-video",
        "published": "2026-08-08T05:13:01.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "Deadline",
        "title": "Team Trump Trolls Taylor Swift With Song Use Before Copyright Claim Brings Silence",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/08/team-trump-trolls-taylor-swift-with-song-use-before-copyright-claim",
        "published": "2026-08-08T13:55:37.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "Rolling Stone",
        "title": "Taylor Swift Removes ‘August’ From Team Trump TikTok Video",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/08/taylor-swift-removes-august-from-team-trump-tiktok-video",
        "published": "2026-08-08T15:00:14.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}