The White House has fired back after Ariana Grande condemned them for using one of her songs in a video promoting immigration arrests.

The controversy began after the Trump administration shared a TikTok on Tuesday (June 9) featuring footage of ICE agents carrying out arrests.

The 32-year-old's song 'Bye' was used as the soundtrack, while the video was captioned: "Bye-bye. President Trump has delivered the most secure border in history."

The Grammy-winning singer did not hold back when she responded in the comments section.

"Please do not ever use my music in relation to this barbaric, inhumane, heinous nonsense. F*** ICE," she wrote, according to Variety.

As of this writing, the comment was no longer visible on the post. However, representatives for Grande confirmed to the outlet that she had made the comment, adding that "for some reason it's not publicly visible".

The sound appears to have been removed from the video.

White House Response and Grande's previous criticism of Trump policies

The administration quickly pushed back against Grande's comment in a statement shared with Variety.

"We'll say this one last time: what's actually barbaric, inhumane, and heinous are the criminal illegal aliens who have injured and murdered innocent American citizens," White House spokesperson Abigail Jackson said.

The statement appeared to contain a pointed reference to Grande's 2014 hit 'One Last Time' from her album, My Everything.

This is not the first time the 'The Way' songstress has publicly criticized immigration policies associated with President Donald Trump.

Last September, Grande shared an Instagram post claiming that "immigrants have been violently torn from their families and communities have been destroyed," per Yahoo.

At the time, White House deputy press secretary Kush Desai responded by referencing several of Grande's song titles in a statement, including 'Save Your Tears', 'Just Like Magic', and 'Get Well Soon'.

Other Artists Have Also Objected

Grande is not the only musician to condemn the administration for using popular songs in immigration-related content.

In November 2025, Olivia Rodrigo slammed the White House and the Department of Homeland Security after her song 'All-American B***h' was used in a video encouraging undocumented migrants to "self-deport".

"Don't ever use my songs to promote your racist, hateful propaganda," she wrote.

The following month, Sabrina Carpenter criticized officials for using her song 'Juno' in an ICE arrest video.

In a post on X, she penned: "This video is evil and disgusting. Do not ever involve me or my music to benefit your inhumane agenda."

SZA also took aim at the administration after her song 'Big Boys' appeared in another deportation-related social media post.

Writing on X, she claimed: "White House rage baiting artists for free promo is PEAK DARK ..inhumanity +shock and aw tactics ..Evil n Boring."

Featured image credit: SAVERIO MARFIA / Getty

The White House has issued a stinging rebuke to Ariana Grande after she called out supporters of Donald Trump online.Using titles from her own songs against her, the Trump administration channels hit back at the singer, claiming that she had misrepresented Trump’s record in office. The 32-year-old singer had previously shared an Instagram post from a podcast host criticizing the Trump presidency. The White House takes aim at Ariana GrandeIt’s not something that we’d have expected to see several years ago, but somehow the star of Wicked and the President of the United States’ government squaring off in an online feud feels very 2025. It all started when Grande shared a post originally created by ‘A Bit Fruity’ podcast host Matt Bernstein, in which he slammed voters who cast their ballot for Trump instead of Democratic candidate Kamala Harris in the 2024 election.Ariana Grande shared the post taking aim at Trump's record in government. Credit: InstagramIn that post - later shared by Grande - Bernstein wrote: “I want to check in with [Trump] voters."“I have one very genuine question: it’s been 250 days. now that immigrants have been violently torn from their families and communities have been destroyed, now that trans people have been blamed for virtually everything and live in fear, now that free speech is on the brink of collapse for us all — has your life gotten better?”It continued: “Have your groceries gotten cheaper? Has your health insurance premium gone down? Has your work/life balance improved? “Can you take a vacation yet? Are you happier? “Has the widespread suffering of others paid off for you in the way he promised it would, or are you still waiting?”The White House responded in typically fiery fashionWhite House spokesperson Kush Desai hit back at Grande in a post on official channels, using her own songs against her. “Save your tears, Ariana,” the post began.“Because President Trump’s actions ended Joe Biden’s inflation crisis and are bringing in trillions in new investments,“He even signed an executive order just like magic that paved the way for the FTC to crack down on Ticketmaster for ripping off Ariana Grande’s concert-going fans. “Get well soon, Ariana!”Ariana Grande. Credit: Christina House/Los Angeles Times via Getty ImagesOf course, it goes without saying that Grande supported Harris at the previous election and will presumably remain no fan of the Trump administration.Whether she chooses to hit out at them publicly again is anyone’s guess. Featured image credit: Instagram

The White House has found itself at the center of controversy once again, after pop sensation Sabrina Carpenter criticized the administration for using one of her songs in a video that she described as promoting an "inhumane agenda."

The pop star, known for her hits and social media presence, took to X (formerly Twitter) to express her outrage over the unapproved use of her music.

Sabrina Carpenter Speaks Out Against the White House Video

The drama began on Tuesday when the White House posted a video featuring Carpenter's song "Juno" playing in the background.

The video showed U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents making arrests. Carpenter, 26, did not mince words when condemning the video and its message.

In a post on X, she wrote: “This video is evil and disgusting. Do not ever involve me or my music to benefit your inhumane agenda.”

Carpenter’s strong words quickly gained traction, as fans and followers rallied behind her in support.

White House Responds to the Backlash

Despite the public outcry, the White House stood firm on its decision to use the song, defending the video’s content.

White House spokesperson Abigail Jackson issued a blunt response, telling Newsweek: “Here’s a Short n’ Sweet message for Sabrina Carpenter: we won’t apologize for deporting dangerous criminal illegal murderers, rapists, and pedophiles from our country.”

Jackson went on to criticize the singer's stance, citing Carpenter’s lyrics from her own song 'Man Child,' where she sings, “Is it stupid, or is it slow?”

Jackson added: “Anyone who would defend these sick monsters must be stupid, or is it slow?”

Carpenter has hit out at the White House. Credit: Axelle/Bauer-Griffin/FilmMagic/Getty

The White House and Its History of Song Backlash

Carpenter is not the first artist to voice frustration over the White House's use of their music. In July, British pop star Jess Glynne also called out the administration for using her song 'Hold My Hand' in a promotional video.

The video, posted by the White House, showed multiple people in handcuffs being escorted onto flights by ICE agents, with the tagline: “When ICE books you a one-way Jet2 holiday to deportation. Nothing beats it!”

The clip, which was part of a social media trend, quickly amassed over 12 million views, but it didn’t sit well with Glynne.

She responded on Instagram, saying: “This post honestly makes me sick. My music is about love, unity, and spreading positivity – never about division or hate.”

ICE often shares videos featuring popular songs. Credit: David Dee Delgado / Getty

Celebrity Backlash Continues

Glynne was not alone in her criticism. Actress Zoe Lister, who voiced the Jet2 holiday commercial that accompanied Glynne’s song, also spoke out against the White House’s use of the audio.

Lister tweeted: “What can be done about @whitehouse using @jet2pics sound and my voiceover to promote their nasty agenda?”

Other artists have joined in the protest as well, including high-profile names like ABBA, Bruce Springsteen, Olivia Rodrigo, Neil Young, Guns N’ Roses, Rihanna, Beyoncé, and Adele.

These musicians have all made their feelings known about the administration’s use of their music in promoting its policies.

Featured image credit: Pascal Le Segretain / Getty

At this year's MTV Video Music Awards, which aired live on Monday, Taylor Swift used her Video of the Year acceptance speech to reiterate her stance on LGBTQ+ rights.

She won the coveted award for her You Need To Calm Down music video, which was executive produced by openly gay YouTuber and recording artist Todrick Hall (along with Swift) and featured a number of high-profile LGBTQ+ figures.

This is the moment Taylor Swift urged the White House to vote on the Equality Act bill during her acceptance speech at the VMAs:

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Included in the video were the likes of Modern Family's Jesse Tyler Ferguson, transgender actress and activist Laverne Cox and popular YouTuber Hannah Hart.

At the end of the video, fans were urged to sign a petition in support of the Equality Act bill. This particular piece of legislation would seek to protect LGBTQ+ people against discrimination in the following areas: employment, education, housing, public accommodations, jury service, federal funding and credit.

Take a look at the award-winning music video for You Need To Calm Down:

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The bill was passed by the Democratic-controlled House in May, but it is not yet known if the law will be brought to a vote in the Republican-controlled Senate.

During her acceptance speech, the 29-year-old superstar referenced the petition, saying: "It now has half a million signatures, which is five times the amount that it would need to warrant a response from the White House." Swift then pretended to check the time by looking down at her wrist and tapping an imaginary watch.

Per CNN, the White House has now responded to the All Too Well singer. On Tuesday, White House deputy press secretary Judd Deere said the Trump administration "opposes discrimination" but does not support the Equality Act bill.

"The Trump administration absolutely opposes discrimination of any kind and supports the equal treatment of all; however, the House-passed bill in its current form is filled with poison pills that threaten to undermine parental and conscience rights," Deere said in response to Swift's comments.

This year's VMAs have been pretty spectacular, and at the glitzy ceremony held at the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey, nobody was more highly honoured than Taylor Swift.

This year, Tay-Tay managed to achieve the incredible accolade of winning the 2019 MTV Video Music Awards' top prize of  video of the year for her LGBTQ pride anthem, "You Need To Calm Down."

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The song, which Taylor had composed in support of the Equality Act legislation, which prevents discrimination on the basis of gender identity and sexuality, was a critical and commercial hit.

But when she took to the stage to receive her shiny award - flanked by the cast and crew members who had helped produce the video - she took the opportunity to publicly call out the White House.

Speaking to an audience of thousands of attendees, Taylor stated: "I just want to say that this is a fan-voted award. So, I first want to say thank you to the fans because in this video, several points were made, so you voting for this video means that you want a world where we're all treated equally."

Check out Taylor's speech in the video below: 

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She continued: "Regardless of who we are, regardless of how we identify, at the end of this video there was a petition -- and there still is a petition for the Equality Act, which basically just says we all deserve equal rights under the law."

Taylor added: "And, I want to thank everyone who signed that petition because it now has half-a-million signatures, which is five times the amount that it would need to warrant a response from the White House."

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However, Taylor is likely going to be better known for a cringe-worthy social gaffe this year than for her social justice advocacy. What's the faux pas that's on everyone's mind right now? The fact that John Travolta accidentally mistook her for a drag queen.