For many, Kesha represents the original recipe 4Loko, nights you can’t remember (because of the 4Loko), and damn catchy party anthems. But the White House recently pushed the party animal to take on a new role: a spokesperson for peace, human dignity, and a reminder that Donald Trump’s name appears in the Epstein Files more than Eminem’s did in Stan’s letters. On the American surveillance and propaganda app known as TikTok, the White House made light of human suffering and tax dollars going toward weapons instead of healthcare by sound tracking war planes and bombing footage with Kesha’s hit song “Blow”:
You know things are bad when the Administration makes Baudrillard’s argument that war has lost its gravitas and became a media event to hide the reality that none of this was actually what we thought it was both prescient and relatable. That said, we hit the point where the WH press secretary started responding to hard hitting policy questions with “your mom” long ago. Somebody has to stand up, and that somebody appears to be Kesha:
Curious timing though: Kesha’s rebuke came about three weeks after the White House posted the video. Better late than never. We’re talking to you, Taylor Swift.
According to NME‘s coverage, the outrage response may just be part of the overall social media strategy:
[W]hite House Communications Director Steven Cheung re-posted Kesha’s statement on his X/Twitter profile. “All these ‘singers’ keep falling for this,” he wrote. “This just gives us more attention and more view counts to our videos because people want to see what they’re bitching about. Thank you for your attention to this matter.”
Shortly afterwards, Kesha fired back with a simple request: “Stop using my music, perverts.” She also tagged the official White House account in the tweet.
Is Steven Cheung revealing some master plan or is this just an attempt at damage control? For example, it is definitely true that Sabrina Carpenter speaking out against the White House’s use of “Juno” brought more attention and views to their video. It was also one of the biggest ratios in Twitter history; those were eyes of judgment, not approval. Considering Trump’s historically low approval rating, ICE’s melting approval rating, and widespread fallout from going to war with Iran from some of MAGA’s most ardent supporters, does giving celebrities with millions of devoted fans an opportunity to voice their dissatisfaction with policies home and abroad really help the government’s cause? That’s a pretty hard sell.
Two things. Today, we are all Kesha fans:
Second, let’s all welcome Kesha to the playlist!
Kesha Slams White House For Using Her Song ‘Blow’ In TikTok Edit [Forbes]
Earlier: You Could Make A Playlist Of All The Musicians Who Sued Trump For Playing Their Music
Sabrina Carpenter Wins Musical Feud With The White House, They Move On To Her Comedy Career
Chris Williams became a social media manager and assistant editor for Above the Law in June 2021. Prior to joining the staff, he moonlighted as a minor Memelord™ in the Facebook group Law School Memes for Edgy T14s . He endured Missouri long enough to graduate from Washington University in St. Louis School of Law. He is a former boat builder who is learning to swim and is interested in rhetoric, Spinozists and humor. Getting back in to cycling wouldn’t hurt either. You can reach him by email at cwilliams@abovethelaw.com and by tweet at @WritesForRent.
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