When a government borrows an artist's voice to narrate its exercise of power, it enters a contest over meaning that the artist did not consent to join. This week, Swedish singer Zara Larsson became the latest in a growing line of musicians to reclaim that voice, objecting to the White House's use of her song 'Midnight Sun' as a soundtrack to footage of immigration enforcement raids. Her protest, viewed more than four million times, sits within a broader human tension as old as art itself: who controls what a song means, and in whose service it is allowed to speak.
Zara Larsson slams White House for using 'Midnight Sun' in deportation video
The video depicted undocumented immigrants being detained and deported by ICE agents, raising concerns about the dehumanizing portrayal of vulnerable populations.
These people in this video—they're real people.
Mark
So the White House literally just took her song and used it to caption a deportation video?
Mimi
That's what happened. They overlaid "Midnight Sun" on footage of ICE agents conducting raids and captioned it "never ending deportations"—a direct play on her lyrics.
Luke
Wait, did they license the song or just use it?
Mimi
The reporting doesn't specify whether they licensed it or not. What we know is that the audio was removed after Larsson objected.
Mark
And she made a response video?
Mimi
Yes, over four minutes long, and it went viral—4.2 million views on TikTok. She called the whole thing dehumanizing and pointed out that the people in the video are real people with jobs trying to build better lives.
Luke
Did she say the White House was trying to be cruel, or was she more focused on the effect?
Mimi
She focused on the effect. She said it was dehumanizing and that the White House was using her music to sow division, even though the song itself is about connection.
Mark
Is this the first time an artist has pushed back on the White House using their music?
Mimi
No. Taylor Swift, Olivia Rodrigo, Sabrina Carpenter, and Ariana Grande have all objected to their songs being used in White House content. In each case, the songs were removed.
Luke
So the White House complies when artists complain, but they keep posting the videos themselves?
Mimi
That's the pattern so far. The audio gets stripped out, but the video stays up.
Mark
What did the White House say when Larsson called them out?
Luke
According to the reporting, they haven't commented yet. The BBC reached out but got no response.
Mimi
The fact that they removed the song quickly suggests they understood the objection, but yeah, no public statement about it.
Mark
Do you think this changes how they'll approach music going forward?
Luke
That's still unknown. The pattern shows they'll remove songs when artists complain, but it doesn't tell us whether they'll be more careful about licensing or permissions in the first place.
Der Puls
- The White House set footage of ICE agents handcuffing and loading men into vehicles to Larsson's 'Midnight Sun,' captioning it 'never ending deportations' in a deliberate twist of her lyrics.
- Larsson responded with a three-minute video that has surpassed 4.2 million views, calling the use of her music dehumanizing and insisting the people shown are real human beings with lives and reasons for being where they are.
- Her objection joins a mounting chorus — Taylor Swift, Olivia Rodrigo, Sabrina Carpenter, and Ariana Grande have all demanded the Trump administration stop using their music without permission, with each removal request so far honored.
- The White House stripped the audio from the post but left the video itself online, a quiet compliance that resolves nothing about how the administration intends to handle artist permissions going forward.
- For Larsson, this is not an isolated incident — an earlier video of Trump dancing to her song 'Lush Life' had already drawn her criticism, cementing her view that her catalog is being systematically repurposed for political ends she rejects.
When a government borrows an artist's voice to narrate its exercise of power, it enters a contest over meaning that the artist did not consent to join. This week, Swedish singer Zara Larsson became the latest in a growing line of musicians to reclaim that voice, objecting to the White House's use of her song 'Midnight Sun' as a soundtrack to footage of immigration enforcement raids. Her protest, viewed more than four million times, sits within a broader human tension as old as art itself: who controls what a song means, and in whose service it is allowed to speak.
Zara Larsson took to social media this week to confront the White House over what she called a dehumanizing use of her music. The offending post had appeared on the White House's TikTok feed: a reel of Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents handcuffing men and loading them into vehicles, set to her song 'Midnight Sun' and captioned 'never ending deportations' — a deliberate play on her lyrics. The audio has since been removed, though the video remains.
In a response that drew more than 4.2 million views, Larsson spoke plainly about what troubled her. She reposted the White House clip, then addressed her followers directly — the people in those images are real, she said. Most are undocumented workers seeking better lives. They have jobs, families, reasons for being where they are. A song she understood as expressing connection between people and the natural world had been turned, in her view, into an instrument of division.
Larsson's objection is the latest in a pattern that has grown more visible in recent months. Taylor Swift, Olivia Rodrigo, Sabrina Carpenter, and Ariana Grande have each demanded the Trump administration stop using their work without permission or in contexts they find objectionable. In every case, the White House has complied with removal requests — though the videos themselves tend to remain online.
This is not Larsson's first dispute with the administration. Earlier this year she had already criticized a video of President Trump dancing to her song 'Lush Life,' and the two incidents together have made her position clear: she sees the White House's use of her catalog as a pattern of political repurposing she did not authorize and will not quietly accept. The broader question of how the administration approaches artist permissions remains, for now, unanswered.
Zara Larsson posted a three-minute video on social media this week calling out the White House for what she described as a dehumanizing use of her song. The clip in question had appeared on the White House's TikTok feed—a reel stitching together footage of Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents handcuffing men and loading them into vehicles. The White House had overlaid Larsson's "Midnight Sun" across the images and captioned the post "never ending deportations," a play on the song's lyric about a never-ending midnight sun. The audio has since been removed, though the video itself remains visible on the account.
In her response, which has accumulated more than 4.2 million views, Larsson spoke directly to her followers about what bothered her. She reposted the original White House clip, then cut to a selfie of herself making an L-shape with her fingers against her forehead—a gesture of dismissal. "This is so dehumanising," she said of the video. She went on to name what she saw as the core problem: the people shown in those images are real people, she emphasized. Most of them are undocumented workers trying to build better lives, she explained. They have jobs. They have reasons for being where they are. The White House, in her view, had taken her music—which she understood as reflecting connection between people and nature—and weaponized it to sow division.
Larsson's objection is the latest in a pattern that has emerged over recent months. Multiple artists have now demanded that the Trump administration stop using their work without permission or in ways they find objectionable. Taylor Swift's song "August" was removed from a White House reel in August after the singer objected. Olivia Rodrigo condemned a video featuring her music as hateful propaganda, and the post was taken down. Sabrina Carpenter and Ariana Grande have each issued separate warnings to the White House about unauthorized use of their songs in social media content. In each case, the White House has complied with removal requests, though the videos themselves often remain online.
This is not Larsson's first clash with the administration over her music. Earlier in the year, she had already criticized a video of President Donald Trump dancing at various events with her song "Lush Life" layered underneath. That incident, combined with this week's deportation reel, has made clear that Larsson views the White House's use of her catalog as part of a larger pattern—one in which her work is being repurposed for political messaging she does not endorse and in contexts she finds harmful.
The White House has not yet responded to requests for comment on the matter. The removal of the audio track suggests acknowledgment of the complaint, but leaves unresolved the broader question of how the administration will approach artist permissions and the political use of music going forward. For now, the video remains on the platform, a record of the moment before the song was stripped away.
Bemerkenswerte Zitate
These people in this video—they're real people. The vast majority of these people who are undocumented are regular people with jobs and they're just trying to have a better future.— Zara Larsson, in her response video
It's so dehumanising.— Zara Larsson, describing the White House video
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