'F*** ICE': Ariana Grande slams White House for using her song in ICE deportation video

Ariana Grande excoriated the Trump administration on Thursday after the White House's TikTok account posted a video of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents handcuffing people and loading them into vehicles, set to her song 'Bye' from her 2024 album 'Eternal Sunshine', Reuters reported. In a now-deleted comment, Grande, a prominent ICE critic, wrote: "Please do not ever use my music in relation to this barbaric, inhumane, heinous nonsense. f*** ice."

It remains unclear why the 32-year-old removed her comment, though a source told Reuters her team is exploring options to have the music pulled from the video. The song has since been removed from the post. White House spokesperson Abigail Jackson fired back: "We'll say this one last time: what's actually barbaric, inhumane, and heinous are the criminal illegal aliens who have injured and murdered innocent American citizens," the report added.

Grande has never hidden her contempt for the agency and its role in executing President Donald Trump's controversial immigration agenda. She was spotted wearing an "ICE OUT" pin at the Golden Globes this year, and has repeatedly used her platform to guide her millions of followers on how to contact their senators if they witness an ICE deportation in their state, The Daily Beast explained.

The Trump administration has a pattern of using artists' work without authorization—a practice that has consistently drawn backlash. Each incident deepens the divide between Hollywood and the federal government, typically erupting into public disputes and, in some cases, legal threats demanding a stop. The incident also taps into the ongoing national debate around immigration policy, at a time when ICE is ramping up its presence across multiple states, on the back of a budget containing billions of dollars.

This is not the first time that artists have ripped into the administration's efforts to use their work in social media posts. Sabrina Carpenter previously lambasted the government after it used a song from her 2024 album Short n' Sweet to hype up its anti-immigration work. Carpenter replied to a White House post from her X account: "This video is evil and disgusting. Do not involve me or my music again for the benefit of your inhumane agenda."

In November, Olivia Rodrigo slammed the Trump administration after the Department of Homeland Security used her song 'All-American Bitch' in one of its videos. "Don't ever use my songs to promote your racist and hateful propaganda again," Rodrigo wrote on Instagram. The list of artists with a similar complaint also includes Celine Dion, Rihanna, Jess Glynne, and Beyoncé.

The list of artists speaking out against ICE is long. At the 2026 Grammy Awards, several, including Bad Bunny, Olivia Dean, Justin Bieber, Kehlani, and Justin Vernon, used the platform to voice their opposition, many donning "ICE Out" pins on the night. Billie Eilish and her brother Finneas O'Connell were among those wearing the pins, with Eilish famously declaring: "No one is illegal on stolen land. F**k ICE."