Village People send Trump cease-and-desist over 'Macho Man' use at Mar-a-Lago | The Hill
S E E D E D C O N T E N T
by Sarah Polus - 05/16/23 1:47 PM ET
Famed musical group the Village People has sent former President Trump a cease-and-desist letter over his usage of their hit song "Macho Man."
Karen Willis, the band's manager and wife of lead singer Victor Willis, sent Trump's lawyer, Joe Tacopina, the letter on Monday, calling into question a recent performance at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida.
A coverband's recent performance of the group's song at Trump's Florida resort caused "confusion," as many believed the imitation group was the actual band, Willis argued in the letter.
Willis also took issue with the coverband dressing similarly to the Village People, saying, "the use of the group's image and likeness at Mar-a-Lago was unauthorized," and a trademark violation.
The Village People have spoken out about Trump's usage of their music before, notably in 2020 when they penned a Facebook post saying he had been "respectful in his use of our songs and has not crossed the line."
Monday's letter, a copy of which was obtained by The Hill, sang a different tune.
"Though my husband has tolerated your client's use of his Village People music, we cannot allow such use by him to cause public confusion as to endorsement," the letter reads.
The missive stipulates that Trump must cease use of the group's image, likeness and music in his campaign or personal use.
In response to the letter, Tacopina told TMZ he would "only deal with the attorney of the Village People, if they have one, not the wife of one of the members."
He added, "But they should be thankful that President Trump allowed them to get their name back in the press. I haven't heard their name in decades. Glad to hear they are still around."
The Hill has reached out to Tacopina for further comment.
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Not Satire!
aww, trump wants to be a macho man...
Macho Man is Trump's "Theme Song"! LOL...
Biden’s theme song.
Except Trump really uses Macho Man, an iconic gay anthem, as his theme song...
He plays it whenever he enters a room!
Hilarious!
Another false article, people are dumb enough to fall for anything.
What a fucking idiot.
It was a cover band. Does she even realize how many damn cover and tribute bands are out there?
Instead of sending the letter to Trump's attorney they need to send one to the cover band. See where that gets her.
Same place as it got with Trump's lawyer- a quick, short, rejection response- and quick filing in the circular bin.
This says it all. Needs a few more minutes of relevance................
Someone is being a nosy Nelly due to, more than likely, the pain and suffering caused by chronic TDS.
Why is she only upset over "Macho Man"? Also included in the Trump Rally playlist is "Y.M.C.A.". Just a guess but maybe she doesn't think that one was as big a hit so she's not upset over that one?