Just hours after the tragic Tree of Life synagogue shooting in Pittsburgh on Saturday, President Donald Trump held a Midwest rally where the song “Happy” was played. Pharrell Williams, the artist behind the song that turned into a viral sensation, was not pleased to find this out.
In fact, he had his lawyer send Trump a cease and desist letter.
“On the day of the mass murder of 11 human beings at the hands of a deranged ‘nationalist,’ you played his song ‘Happy’ to a crowd at a political event in Indiana,” wrote attorney Howard King. “There was nothing ‘happy’ about the tragedy inflicted upon our country on Saturday and no permission was granted for your use of this song for this purpose.”
King also stated that Williams has not and will not grant the President permission to publicly perform or otherwise broadcast any of his music.
The attorney said the use of “Happy” without Williams’ consent constitutes copyright and trademark infringement.
Williams can now be added to the list of musicians who have asked Trump to no longer play their music, including The Rolling Stones, Queen, R.E.M., The O’Jays, Prince’s estate, and Adele.
