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Taylor Swift’s 2020 song “August” has been removed from a TikTok video posted by the Team Trump campaign account, according to reports from Variety and Billboard. The audio track was taken down from the U.S. version of the platform following copyright status changes, displaying a message that the sound is unavailable in the country.
The Team Trump TikTok Post and Audio Removal
According to Variety, the video in question was uploaded four days prior to the audio’s removal on the @TeamTrump TikTok account, which boasts 14 million followers. The footage features Donald and Melania Trump watching a fireworks display from a balcony, accompanied by overlay text reading, “Mood because it’s August and Donald Trump is your president.”
The post’s caption originally taunted the pop superstar, stating, “I’m sure @Taylor Swift is going to be super excited we used her song! #taylorswift #maga #august,” as reported by Billboard. By Friday evening, users attempting to play the clip encountered a platform notice stating, “The copyright owner hasn’t made this sound available in your country.” Commenters on the platform quickly reacted to the silent video, with one user writing, “TAYLOR REMOVING THE AUDIO QUEEEEEEN,” according to Variety.
Broader Pattern of Swift Audio Removals on Political Accounts
The disappearance of “August” is not an isolated incident for political social media accounts featuring the singer’s catalog. Variety notes that another Team Trump video utilizing Swift’s 2025 track “Father Figure” has also lost its audio track. Similarly, an official White House TikTok account video from last November featuring “The Fate of Ophelia” has had its sound removed.
Despite these takedowns, other posts have remained active. According to Billboard, a video posted with a version of Swift’s “Red” retained its audio track as of publication. Following the removal of “August,” the Team Trump account responded by posting a live performance version of the title track from “Red” alongside mock-up cover art styled as “Red (Trump’s Version),” accompanied by the caption, “Did you know Taylor Swift wrote a whole album about the color of the Republican Party.” That subsequent post also lacked available sound at the time of reporting.
Background of Tensions Between Trump and Swift
Political friction between Donald Trump and Taylor Swift escalated significantly during the 2024 U.S. presidential election cycle. In September 2024, Swift publicly endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris on Instagram, writing that Harris “fights for the rights and causes I believe need a warrior to champion them,” as cited by Variety. In response, Trump posted “I HATE TAYLOR SWIFT!” on social media.
Prior to that endorsement, in August 2024, Trump shared artificial intelligence-generated images on social media that falsely portrayed Swift and her fans endorsing his presidential campaign, including a depiction of the singer dressed as Uncle Sam. When questioned by Fox Business about potential legal action regarding the deepfakes, Trump asserted that the images “were all made up by other people,” according to Variety. Neither Swift nor representatives for the Trump campaign provided immediate comment on the latest TikTok audio removals.
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