A federal judge has temporarily blocked former president Donald Trump from using music legend Issac Haye’s hit song “Hold On (I’m Coming)” in campaign rallies, according to court documents. The singer-songwriter’s estate previously demanded that Trump pay up $3 million for playing the track.
“We are very grateful and happy for the decision by Judge Thrash … I couldn’t ask for a better decision. I want this to serve as an opportunity for other artists to come forward that don’t want their music used by Donald Trump or other political entities,” Hayes’ son, Isaac Hayes III, said to reporters Tuesday.
Thrash issued the the short-term ban from Atlanta as a buffer until Hayes’ family follows through with their lawsuit, which seeks a permanent injunction. Trump, who has played the song as his exit music, won’t have to remove any of the previous online videos that included it.
In a reported statement to the New York Times, Trump’s camp said the song wasn’t in its playlist anymore.
“The campaign had already agreed to cease further use. We’re very gratified that the court recognized the first amendment issues at stake and didn’t order a takedown of existing videos,” Ronald Coleman, Trump’s campaign lawyer reportedly said.
On Aug. 11, Hayes’ estate sent a cease-and-desist order Trump’s team over the unauthorized use of the song. In the letter, which was published on social media by former CNN contributor Roland Martin, called on Trump’s campaign to pay $3 million, remove any videos of Trump rallies or other campaign media using the song and release a statement noting that Hayes’ estate and family have not authorized the campaign to use the artist’s music.
BREAKING NEWS: Lawyers for the Isaac Hayes estate have slapped @realDonaldTrump with a lawsuit demanding he stop the unauthorized use of his music at his rallies. They are also demanding $3 million for past use. #RolandMartinUnfiltered @BlkStarNetwork pic.twitter.com/O0nH275haQ
— rolandsmartin (@rolandsmartin) August 11, 2024
Hayes’ attorneys noted in the letter that the $3 million requested by the estate is “a very discounted fee” from the usual rate of $150,000 per use of the song, which based on the number of times “Hold On” has been used by the campaign, would lead to a total that “will be 10 times as much if we litigate.” The estate followed up with a deadline of Aug. 16 to receive a response from Trump’s team, mentioning that it would sue his camp if it didn’t reply.
The rights around use of songs for public events can vary; when artists sell their catalogues to conglomorates, companies’ entire catalogs can be purchased for tens of thousands of dollars, meaning the artist can merely object publicly. To pursue litigation, the Hayes estate would need to hold the proper licenses to the late singer’s music.
