On Saturday night, Donald Trump held the first rally of his re-election campaign since the Covid-19 lockdown began.
He had boasted during the week that one million people requested tickets. However, the 19,000 capacity arena in Tulsa, Oklahoma wasn't near full.
Trump walked out to 'I Won't Back Down', the classic song by Tom Petty. He did so without permission from Petty's estate. The musician died in 2017.
In a statement released on Saturday night, Petty's family say they have issued a cease and desist notice to the Trump campaign regarding the song.
"Tom Petty's song "I Won't Back Down" was used today at Donald Trump's campaign rally in Tulsa, OK," reads the statement.
"Trump was in no way authorized to use this song to further a campaign that leaves too many Americans and common sense behind.
"Both the late Tom Petty and his family firmly stand against racism and discrimination of any kind. Tom Petty would never want a song of his used for a campaign of hate. He liked to bring people together.
"Tom wrote this song for the underdog, for the common man and for EVERYONE. We want to make it clear that we believe everyone is free to vote as they like, think as they like, but the Petty family doesn't stand for this. We believe in America and we believe in democracy. But Donald Trump is not representing the noble ideals of either. We would hate for fans that are marginalized by this administration to think we were complicit in this usage. Concurrently, we have issued an official cease and desist notice to the Trump campaign."
The statement was signed by Adria, Annakim, Dana and Jane Petty
Picture credit: Shutterstock.com
