Taylor Swift's songs "August" and "Father Figure" have been removed or muted on several videos posted by the Trump campaign and White House TikTok accounts, reflecting a continuing public feud between the singer and Donald Trump [1, 2, 3]. A video posted on August 3, 2026, by Team Trump showed Donald Trump and Melania watching fireworks with "August" playing, but the song is now muted or inaccessible [1, 2, 3]. Another Trump campaign post that referenced Swift’s 2012 album "Red" similarly lost its audio [1, 2].
Earlier posts from Trump’s team and the White House used Swift’s music from her 2025 album "The Life of a Showgirl," including "The Fate of Ophelia" and "High Infidelity" [1, 2, 3]. For instance, in April 2026, the White House posted a video of the Artemis II crew meeting Trump set to "High Infidelity" [2]. Videos featuring Swift’s music have shown copyright notices on TikTok indicating the songs are unavailable in certain countries, suggesting copyright restrictions prompted some removals [2, 3].
Taylor Swift has not publicly addressed the recent muting or removal of her music from Trump-related posts [1, 2, 3]. The feud between Trump and Swift dates back to 2024 after Swift endorsed Kamala Harris and Trump responded with strong public criticism. Trump declared, "I HATE TAYLOR SWIFT!" in 2024 and continued to disparage her in 2025, saying he liked her music "about 25 percent less now" [1, 2, 3].
Reports say Team Trump’s TikTok use of Swift’s songs was deliberate to provoke or "rage bait" the singer [1, 3]. The White House also posted memes and political content using Swift's songs, sparking objections from other artists but not from Swift herself [1, 3]. For example, in July 2026, the White House posted memes targeting Swift on her wedding day to Travis Kelce [3].
Pop stars like Ariana Grande and Sabrina Carpenter publicly rejected having their music used in connection with Trump, calling it "barbaric" and "inhumane" [1]. Grande said, "Please do not use my music in relation to this barbaric, inhumane, heinous nonsense," while Carpenter called a video "evil and disgusting."
Swift’s Eras Tour has grossed $2.2 billion, underscoring her high-profile influence as this feud continues [1]. The most recent confirmed instance of muting Swift’s music on Trump-related TikTok accounts occurred with the August 3 video of fireworks, highlighting ongoing tensions as the 2026 election cycle advances [1, 2, 3].
