Radiohead Tells Trump’s Homeland Security to ‘Go F— Yourselves’ After Song Used in ICE Video

In a collective statement notable for its forceful language, the members of Radiohead have publicly condemned U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) for using their 1997 song "Let Down" without permission in an agency promotional video. The band, which has long maintained strict control over its artistic catalog, issued a direct rebuke to the Department of Homeland Security, ICE's parent agency. Their representative shared the full message, which read in part: “We demand that the amateurs in control of the ICE social media account take it down... you don’t get to appropriate it without a fight. Also, go fuck yourselves… Radiohead.”

The controversial video, shared on ICE's official platforms, paired a choral cover of the melancholic track with imagery of crime victims. On-screen text blamed "illegal aliens" for "raping and murdering" American citizens, framing the agency's mission as protecting families from "criminal illegal alien violence." This incident is part of a recurring pattern for ICE, a bureau established in 2003 within the Department of Homeland Security. The agency has frequently utilized copyrighted music without authorization to support its enforcement narratives, a practice that sits in a legal gray area regarding "fair use" but is widely criticized as ethically problematic. Legal scholars note that while such use may sometimes withstand a court challenge, it deliberately exploits the slow pace of copyright litigation to achieve immediate political messaging goals.

Radiohead now joins a growing list of prominent musicians who have objected to ICE's tactics of musical appropriation. Earlier this year, pop artist Olivia Rodrigo demanded the agency cease using her song "All American Bitch," labeling the associated video "racist, hateful propaganda." Similarly, singer Sabrina Carpenter protested when her track "Juno" was synced with footage of immigrant detentions. ICE not only ignored Carpenter's request but later featured a manipulated clip from a "Saturday Night Live" sketch, editing the audio to falsely imply she was arresting a cast member for being "too illegal." This repeated behavior suggests a calculated strategy of provoking cultural figures to generate engagement and media attention, a modern political tactic that leverages controversy to amplify a divisive message.

The band's blunt public condemnation stands in contrast to a separate, more legally focused dispute involving guitarist Jonny Greenwood. He and filmmaker Paul Thomas Anderson recently sought removal of Greenwood's "Phantom Thread" score from the "Melania" documentary, arguing the licensing agreement required consultation—a step allegedly bypassed. The film's producer, former Melania Trump advisor Marc Beckman, asserted the cue was properly licensed and would remain, telling Variety that while Radiohead is a "favorite band," the inclusion was justified. This parallel case highlights the dual avenues artists navigate: some pursue contractual remedies, while others, like the full band here, resort to forceful public statements when their work is co-opted for political agendas they find reprehensible.

Artistic clashes with political entities are not new—figures from Neil Young to The Rolling Stones have historically contested the misuse of their music. However, the digital age and the intense politicization of immigration have escalated these conflicts. The choice of "Let Down" is particularly ironic. The song is a fan-favorite B-side from Radiohead's seminal 1997 album "OK Computer," an album widely analyzed for its critiques of modern alienation and technological dehumanization. Its themes of disappointment and existential fatigue directly contradict the video's simplistic, fear-driven narrative. This dissonance between the song's original meaning and its repurposed context strikes at the heart of artistic integrity. As music historian Dr. Elena Marsh observed, "This isn't merely a copyright skirmish. It's a fundamental clash over meaning, where a work of art about shared human fragility is weaponized to promote division and fear. The band's response is a defense of that original, unifying context."