Katy Perry is speaking out against the Trump administration after discovering her hit song ‘Firework’ was used as the soundtrack for a video showing military strikes in Iran, Deadline reported. The singer expressed her frustration in a post today, clarifying that the usage of her music was completely unauthorized and against her values.
The White House posted the video to its TikTok account on Thursday. The footage depicted military strikes and was edited to sync the lyrics “boom boom boom” from the song with the explosions. The account captioned the post with the phrase Iran has been warned.
Regarding the incident, Perry wrote, “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. I did not approve this, I was not asked, and I absolutely do not condone it.” It is clear that this move by the administration has crossed a line for the artist.
This isn’t the first time the Trump admin has used popular songs in their controversial videos
Perry further explained the intent behind her work, stating, “I wrote this song to be an anthem of hope, healing, and inner strength for people going through their darkest personal moments.” She added, “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. My music is for bringing people together, not celebrating warfare.”
This situation unfolded as President Donald Trump continues to threaten an expanded bombing campaign in Iran. During a press briefing on Friday, the President faced questions regarding the nature of these military actions. When asked if targeting civilian infrastructure like power plants and bridges could be considered a war crime, the President declined to answer. Instead, he questioned the reporter about their employer. Upon learning the reporter represented The New York Times, the President dismissed the outlet by calling it “the failing New York Times.”
Perry is not the first artist to publicly clash with the current administration over the use of their music. Just last month, Ariana Grande took issue with a video posted by the White House to promote the Secure America Act, which provides funding for ICE and Border Patrol. The administration used her 2024 song ‘Bye’ as the background music for the promotional clip.
Grande made her stance known by commenting directly on the post. She wrote, “Please do not ever use my music in relation to this barbaric, inhumane, heinous nonsense.”n.
Published: Jul 26, 2026 07:00 pm