advertisement
Music News

Katy Perry Condemns Trump Administration’s Use of ‘Firework’ in Military Strikes Video

"I absolutely do not condone it," the pop star wrote.

Katy Perry
Katy Perry
Courtesy Photo

Katy Perry is speaking out after the White House used her hit song “Firework” without her permission.

The 41-year-old pop star took to social media on Saturday (July 25) to condemn the Trump administration for featuring the 2010 anthem in a White House TikTok post showing footage of military strikes. Earlier this week, the White House’s official TikTok account shared a video that synchronized Perry’s “boom, boom, boom” lyrics with black-and-white footage of bombing. The post was captioned, “Iran has been warned.”


“I am deeply appalled and angry to see ‘Firework’ used on the @WhiteHouse TikTok account as a backing track for video footage of military strikes,” Perry wrote on X. “I did not approve this, I was not asked, and I absolutely do not condone it.”

advertisement

She continued, “I wrote this song to be an anthem of hope, healing, and inner strength for people going through their darkest personal moments. To see a message of self-worth and upliftment weaponized to soundtrack destruction and violence is a complete violation of everything my song stands for.”

Perry concluded her statement by writing, “My music is for bringing people together, not celebrating warfare.”

Released as the third single from Perry’s 2010 album Teenage Dream, “Firework” became one of the singer’s standout hits, spending four nonconsecutive weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100.

Perry is among dozens of artists who have criticized the Trump administration over the unauthorized use of their music in political videos and at campaign rallies.

In June, Ariana Grande blasted the White House for using her 2024 song “Bye” in a TikTok video promoting ICE agents making arrests. Earlier this year, Kesha also criticized the Trump administration after her song “Blow” was used without authorization in a TikTok featuring fighter jets and military strike footage captioned “Lethality.”

advertisement

Check out Perry’s post on X below.

This article was first published by Billboard U.S.

advertisement
Touring

SeatGeek Fined $25,000 by Ontario Government After Failing to Adhere to Ticket Resale Laws

In the wake of the province's law — which requires individuals or businesses to list tickets for no more than the total original cost, including service fees and taxes — the popular ticket resale website was fined with three administrative penalties after a seller "facilitated the sale of a ticket [that] exceeded the resale price cap."

The Ontario government has fined SeatGeek $25,000 for failing to comply with the province’s face-value ticket resale limits.

Per the province’s Consumer Beware List, the popular ticketing resale site was slapped with three administrative penalties on Aug. 28, including: $10,000 for making “a ticket available or facilitating the sale of a ticket [that] exceeded the resale price cap,” $5,000 for failing to disclose the total price of a ticket when purchased from the primary seller and $10,000 for facilitating a “sale without proof of total price when purchased from primary seller.”

keep readingShow less
advertisement