Why did The White Stripes sue Donald Trump and his campaign? Musical duo drops lawsuit after two months

The White Stripes recently dropped their lawsuit against President-elect Donald Trump and his 2024 presidential campaign. In September 2024, former couple and bandmates Jack and Meg White of The White Stripes hit Donald Trump and his Deputy Director of Communications, Margo Martin, with a copyright infringement lawsuit.

The lawsuit came after Martin allegedly posted a video on X in August, showcasing Trump walking up to his flight with the band's hit track Seven Nation Army playing in the background. A New York federal court filing on Sunday, November 10, stated that the former bandmates dropped their lawsuit. No explicit reason was stated why the former couple decided to do away with the filing.

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"Don't even think about using my music, you fascists"— Jack White after Donald Trump's alleged usage of Seven Nation Army

On August 29, 2024, Jack White of The White Stripes shared a screen recording of a video allegedly posted on X by Donald Trump's 2024 presidential campaign's deputy director of communications, Margo Martin. The 10-second video showed the President-elect boarding a plane with the opening riffs of The White Stripes' 2003 hit Seven Nation Army playing in the background.

Martin's post revealed that the president-elect was traveling to the swing states of Michigan and Wisconsin at the time, both of which he would later win in the election. In the caption to his post, White vehemently criticized the President-elect for allegedly using his music. The singer and guitarist wrote:

"Oh....Don't even think about using my music you fascists. Law suit coming from my lawyers about this (to add to your 5 thousand others.) Have a great day at work today Margo Martin.

"And as long as I'm here, a double f**k you DonOLD for insulting our nation's veterans at Arlington you scum. You should lose every military family's vote immediately from that if ANYTHING makes sense anymore."

White posted a screenshot of his lawsuit against Trump on September 9, with a caption saying that "This machine" sued fascists. The lawsuit showcased The White Stripes' Jack and Meg White as the plaintiffs and Donald Trump, his 2024 presidential election campaign, and Margo Martin as defendants. The suit read:

"The lawsuit seeks redress for a presidential candidate's flagrant misappropriation of the musical composition and sound recording Seven Nation Army."

According to the suit obtained by Rolling Stone, the former president's campaign engaged in "flagrant misrepresentation" of the track when they used its "highly distinctive and immediately recognizable introductory riff" in their video. The lawsuit alleged that the video was shared to give his campaign energy, excitement, and money.

The lawsuit stated that The White Stripes were seeking "significant monetary damages" for Donald Trump's usage of the song. It further claimed that the President-elect did not ask permission from the plaintiffs to use the track or for their endorsement. According to the lawsuit, this was a violation of their rights under federal copyright law.

The lawsuit further noted that the duo had publicly denounced the President-elect for using the same song during his 2016 presidential campaign, expressing their disgust at the association. The lawsuit added:

"Plaintiffs vehemently oppose the policies adopted and actions taken by defendant Trump when he was president and those he has proposed for the second term he seeks,"

However, as mentioned, a New York federal court filing obtained by USA Today on Sunday revealed that the lawsuit was dropped. The Tennessean revealed that the band's attorney, Robert A. Jacobs, had filed a notice of voluntary dismissal of the claims in the lawsuit. No clear reason was given for the dismissal.