According to an official statement issued via @katyperry on X, American pop star Katy Perry publicly condemned the White House for using her hit 2010 anthem “Firework” without her consent in a promotional social media video. The controversial TikTok clip, posted by the official White House account, featured her song overlaid across footage of US military missile strikes on Iranian naval targets.
Perry expressed deep anger over the unauthorized synchronization, stating she was appalled to see her uplifting pop anthem paired with military violence. The video had accumulated over 6 million views on TikTok before the singer voiced her disapproval online.
This incident follows similar public pushbacks from artists such as Olivia Rodrigo, Sabrina Carpenter, Ariana Grande, and Beyoncé, who have all recently reprimanded the administration over the unauthorized use of their catalog tracks in government social media communications.
Validating the ongoing music usage conflict, **The Guardian** reported that “pop star Katy Perry has condemned the Trump White House after it used her hit song Firework in a TikTok video showing US military strikes,” quoting her statement directly. In addition, **BBC News** highlighted Perry’s social media rebuke, citing her post where she declared: “I did not approve this, I was not asked, and I absolutely do not condone it.”
This dispute underscores the growing friction between major pop artists and political social media strategists utilizing viral TikTok audio trends. As copyright law regarding short-form video platforms remains complex, expects artists’ legal teams to push for stricter content identification controls to prevent politically sensitive misattribution.
Source: @katyperry on X — https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/jul/26/katy-perry-firework-song-iran-war-video, July 26, 2026
Photo Credit: Rolling Stone
