Donald Trump violated “Electric Avenue” in his campaign video, says judge

Donald Trump violated copyright by using Eddy Grant's iconic “Electric Avenue” without permission in a 2020 campaign video, a federal judge ruled Friday (September 13), rejecting Trump's argument that he used the song legally and fairly.

Grant sued Trump in 2020 after the then-president used his 1982 hit in a social media video in which he Joe BidenGrant said he was “dismayed” when he received inquiries about whether he had consented to the Republican candidate's use of his music.

Trump's lawyers had argued that the video was protected by the fair use doctrine of copyright law, which allows the “transformative” reuse of protected works in certain situations. But in Friday's decision, Judge John G. Koeltl strongly rejected this argument.

“In this case, the video has a very low degree of transformative impact, if any,” the judge wrote. “The video is best described as a complete copying of music to accompany a political campaign ad.”

A spokesman and a lawyer for the Trump campaign did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Trump has faced repeated backlash in the run-up to the 2024 election from artists who don't want him to use their music. Beyoncé, Celine Dion, the Foo Fighters, ABBA and the estate of Sinead O'Connor have all spoken out or threatened action, and the White Stripes and the estate of Isaac Hayes have both filed lawsuits against him and his campaign.

Four years earlier, Grant had filed a similar lawsuit against Trump for “unlawfully and willfully” using “Electric Avenue,” a funky, reggae-tinged song about the 1981 Brixton riots named after a street that runs through that London neighborhood. The song reached No. 2 on the Hot 100 in the summer of 1983 and ultimately stayed on the charts for 22 weeks.

The video in question, shared by Trump on Twitter, shows a red “Trump” train overtaking a trolley driven by Biden while audio clips of Biden speaking about Grant's 1982 hit play. Grant's lawyers said the campaign refused to remove the clip even after they were warned – implying that Trump was acting as if he was “above the law.”

Faced with these allegations, Trump's legal team argued that the video amounted to fair use, claiming the campaign had turned Grant's song into a vehicle to criticize Biden. In 2021, Judge Koeltl indicated he would likely reject that argument on the grounds that it “misunderstands” how fair use works, but he said it was too early to rule on the issue.

On Friday, the judge made good on his warnings and adopted largely the same reasoning as in his 2021 decision, finding that Trump's video “did not edit the lyrics, vocals or instrumentals of the song at all” and “provided no justification for their extensive appropriations.”

Trump's lawyers had argued that the video “transformed Grant's original conception of 'Electric Avenue' as a protest against social conditions into a colorful attack on the character and personality traits of a rival political figure.” But the judge was not at all swayed by that defense – he said it would only be considered “fair use” if Trump had used the song to attack Grant, not Biden.

“The cartoon does not use 'Electric Avenue' as a vehicle to convey its satirical message, and it makes no attempt to make fun of the song or Grant,” Judge Koeltl wrote, quoting directly from his earlier decision.

Friday's ruling means that Trump and his campaign have been found legally liable for copyright infringement. However, the amount of damages he will ultimately have to pay Grant remains unclear. That question will be resolved in a future trial.

An attorney for Grant did not immediately respond to a request for comment.