The R&B artist whose music appears in a taxpayer-funded ad promoting President Donald Trump is threatening legal action unless the White House stops using his song.
Lawyers for Christian Berishaj, who performs as JMSN, demanded that the administration pull the ad from television and the internet, saying it used his song “Love Me” without permission. They gave the White House until 5 p.m. Thursday to confirm it has stopped using the song.
The lawyers also want the administration to disclose every airing and posting of the ad and how much it spent distributing it.
“You neither requested nor received such permission,” the attorneys wrote in a cease-and-desist letter sent Monday to White House chief of staff Susie Wiles.
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JMSN owns the copyright to both the composition and the recording, according to the letter. His lawyers said the administration did not obtain a synchronization license, a master-use license or any other authorization to use the music.
JMSN publicly objected after the ad began airing last week, saying he “would never authorize my music to be used for ANY political agenda or campaign.”
His lawyers also argue that using the song creates the false impression that JMSN supports or is affiliated with Trump.
“He is not,” they wrote.
The attorneys said legal remedies are “under active consideration” and instructed the White House to preserve records related to the ad.
The ad featuring “Love Me” opens with Trump declaring that the United States will defeat “communism, socialism and Marxism,” as images from his presidency flash across the screen. It ends with a disclaimer saying it was “Paid for by the U.S. Government.”
The demand adds a copyright dispute to an advertising campaign already facing bipartisan criticism over the use of taxpayer money to promote Trump weeks before the midterm elections.
The watchdog group Public Citizen has also filed a complaint claiming that the ads violate federal restrictions on government employees engaging in political activity.
The White House has called the spots public service announcements and denied they are political.
At least three ads have aired nationally on broadcast, cable and streaming platforms, with more than $2.5 million spent on them over the past week, according to AdImpact, which tracks political advertising and media spending.
The administrationset aside $20 million in Customs and Border Protection funds for the broader ad campaign, drawing criticism from lawmakers who said it circumvented Congress.
Trump personally pushed the ad campaign and selected some of its footage, CNN reported. White House staff produced the ads in-house, including one adapted from a Trump campaign video.
The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
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