The legendary rock band Blue Öyster Cult has issued a statement to clarify details regarding Donald Trump's recent use of their iconic 1976 hit “(Don’t Fear) The Reaper” in an AI-generated video. The video, posted on Trump’s Truth Social platform, depicted an AI rendering of Trump, cloaked in dark attire, striking a cowbell in sync with the song’s famous beat, while a simulated JD Vance appeared to play the drumset. The clip also featured altered onscreen text that replaced the original lyrics with politically charged phrases such as “Dems, you babies/ Here comes the reaper” and “Gonna tie your hands … Cry baby end your plan.”

Following the emergence of the video, Blue Öyster Cult promptly released a statement via their social media channels. The band emphasized, “BLUE ÖYSTER CULT was not contacted or notified in advance.” While the band members refrained from explicitly endorsing or disapproving of the song’s inclusion, they meticulously distanced themselves from any involvement in the video’s creation. They further clarified the ownership structure, stating, “The copyright in the song (Don’t Fear) The Reaper is 100% owned by SONY MUSIC.” The rockers concluded by asserting, “BLUE ÖYSTER CULT has no legal right to either authorize or withhold usage, which is 100% controlled by SONY MUSIC.”

Trump’s practice of utilizing songs without explicit consent from their creators is not a new development in his political career. Since 2016, numerous prominent artists, including Beyoncé, the Foo Fighters, Adele, Celine Dion, and Jack White, have publicly criticized the former president for incorporating their musical works into his campaign materials and social media content without proper authorization.

More recently, Trump’s frequent engagement with artificial intelligence has become a distinctive feature of his social media strategy. This trend has significantly escalated in recent years, with countless pieces of AI-generated content appearing on his social media page. A notable instance from the past year involved doctored images that falsely depicted pop superstar Taylor Swift as one of his political supporters. Swift unequivocally addressed this anomaly, stating, “Recently I was made aware that AI of ‘me’ falsely endorsing Donald Trump’s presidential run was posted to his site.” She added that the incident “really conjured up my fears around AI and the dangers of spreading misinformation,” while simultaneously endorsing Kamala Harris.

Despite these controversies surrounding AI-generated content, the White House, in August, released its “Winning the AI Race: America’s AI Action Plan.” This plan underscored Trump’s stated support for artificial intelligence, which he has characterized as “an industrial revolution, an information revolution and a renaissance.”