Katy Perry blasts White House for using 'Firework' in Iran strike clip

Pop star Katy Perry said she was “deeply appalled and angry” after the White House’s TikTok account paired her 2010 hit “Firework” with footage of U.S. military strikes on Iran, becoming the latest in a growing list of pop musicians to publicly object to the administration’s use of their music in social media posts. The official White House TikTok posted the clip Thursday, timing the song’s “boom, boom, boom” lyric to video of missiles striking targets in Iran. The caption read, “Iran has been warned,” alongside a fireworks emoji. Ms. Perry, who has endorsed the Democratic presidential nominee in each of the last three elections, responded Saturday on X. “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,” Ms. Perry said. “I did not approve this, I was not asked, and I absolutely do not condone it.” “I wrote this song to be an anthem of hope, healing, and inner strength for people going through their darkest personal moments,” Ms. Perry continued. “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.” She joins several other artists who have clashed with the White House over unauthorized use of their music this year. Ariana Grande objected in June after the administration used her song “Bye” in a video promoting ICE arrests, and Sabrina Carpenter did the same in December after her track “Juno” soundtracked a similar clip. Olivia Rodrigo, whose song “All-American Bitch” appeared in a self-deportation video last November, later told Dazed magazine she felt “enraged” when she saw it. This article was constructed with the assistance of artificial intelligence and published by a member of The Washington Times' AI News Desk team. The contents of this report are based solely on The Washington Times' original reporting, wire services, and/or other sources cited within the report. For more information, please read our AI policy or contact Steve Fink, Director of Artificial Intelligence, at sfink@washingtontimes.com The Washington Times AI Ethics Newsroom Committee can be reached at aispotlight@washingtontimes.com.