While Trump was campaigning for November’s presidential election, he was faced with a problem: Musicians kept suing him for playing their songs at rallies. Neil Young was among those to take legal action, suing the president in August for playing “Rockin’ in the Free World” and “Devil’s Sidewalk,” even after Young repeatedly told him to stop. However, it will not go to court as Young has now officially dropped the lawsuit, and for a good reason.
This comes from Rolling Stone, which reveals that the decision to dismiss the case was because, well, Trump lost his 2020 presidential bid to Joe Biden over a month ago. This could mean the lawsuit was perhaps symbolic in nature, though Young’s team has not commented on the musician’s intentions.
The original lawsuit filed against Trump stated that Young did not want his music to be a part of a “divisive” movement. “This complaint is not intended to disrespect the rights and opinions of American citizens, who are free to support the candidate of their choosing,” the court documents state. “However, Plaintiff in good conscience cannot allow his music to be used as a ‘theme song’ for a divisive, un-American campaign of ignorance and hate.”
Other musicians who’ve taken legal action against the Trump campaign include Phil Collins and Leonard Cohen’s estate. Tupac’s family also had a tiff with the administration, though not over a MAGA rally. Rather, Tupac’s family bashed Trump’s campaign for using the late rapper’s name to mock Vice President-elect Kamala Harris.
Neil Young is a Warner Music artist. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.