Lawyers acting on behalf of R&B artist Christian Berishaj — aka JMSN — have sent a cease-and-desist letter to Donald Trump’s White House after it used his song “Love Me” in a controversial, taxpayer-funded political ad promoting the president ahead of the 2026 midterm elections.
In the letter sent to White House chief of staff Susie Wiles on Monday, JMSN’s legal representatives said the track, first released in 2023, was used “without a synchronization license, master use license, or any other authorization from the copyright holder.”
And it added: “Nor would permission have been granted if requested.”
Monica Morgan via Getty Images
JMSN himself has said as much, writing on social media this week:
“To anybody who has followed my career and knows what I stand for and built my career on, it should go without saying that I would never authorize my music to be used for ANY political agenda or campaign.”
“For those who are new here, this could have gone 2 ways,” he continued, saying Trump “or his team reach out and ask to license the song, I respond ‘no’ and you never know about it” or “the President illegally uses the song without asking but still the public goes full retard and immediately assumes that a license was granted.”
“Obviously it went the second way,” he added. “I’ve built my career independently outside of any major system and have made it a point to not sacrifice my artistic integrity. I don’t have a publicist or anything so being forced in a situation like this and having to comment is ridiculous.”
The legal letter, signed by Democracy Defenders Action’s Norm Eisen, a former Obama White House ethics lawyer, and representatives from law firm Ballard Spahr LLP, demanded “the government immediately cease and desist from any further use of ‘Love Me’” and not use any of JMSN’s music in the future.
It said the White House had “neither requested nor received such permission” and also risked creating “a false endorsement or association, suggesting that JMSN is connected with or affiliated with this Administration.”
The lawyers called on the Trump administration to “immediately withdraw the Advertisement from all scheduled airings and instruct, in writing, every network, station, cable or satellite provider, streaming service, and media buyer carrying the Advertisement to stop airing it.”
They also demanded that the administration “remove and take down all online copies of the Advertisement and any other videos or posts containing the Song, including but not limited to those on Facebook, X, TikTok, or YouTube” and “provide a written accounting of every airing and posting of the Advertisement, including the date, time, network or station, market, program, and total media spend.”
The lawyers asked for “written confirmation by 5 pm ET on Thursday, October 1 that the government has ceased its infringing activities.”