Ariana Grande has objected to the White House using one of her songs in a video promoting President Donald Trump’s immigration agenda.
The clip, posted to TikTok on Monday, showed border agents handcuffing people, moving them into vehicles and taking them to detention facilities. Grande’s 2024 song “Bye” was used as the soundtrack, while the caption praised Trump for creating what it called the most secure border in U.S. history.
Grande responded directly in the comments, asking that her music not be connected to what she described as cruel and inhumane messaging.
The post was later muted, and Grande’s comment no longer appeared beneath the video. Other users noticed the change and began pointing out that both the audio and her response had disappeared.
A White House spokesperson, Abigail Jackson, defended the administration’s position in comments to U.S. media, saying the real cruelty came from undocumented immigrants who had harmed or killed Americans.
The video appeared after Trump signed legislation allocating more than $70bn in funding for immigration agencies over the rest of his term.
Grande is the latest major artist to push back against Trump’s use of music. Last year, Sabrina Carpenter criticized the White House after her song “Juno” was used in a video featuring ICE operations. During Trump’s 2024 campaign, artists including ABBA, Céline Dion and Beyoncé also objected to their music being used at campaign events or in political material.
