--- title: Rachel Platten Is Not OK That "Fight Song" Played for Trump description: The singer of "Fight Song," used as Hillary Clinton's campaign anthem, is not pleased that her hit was covered at a Trump inaugural ball. canonical: https://time.com/4643437/rachel-platten-fight-song-trump/ author: Raisa Bruner article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2017-01-23T18:03:58.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-04-13T07:40:21.565Z og:title: Singer Speaks Out About Her Song Playing at Inaugural Ball og:description: Previously, the song was the Hillary Clinton campaign anthem. og:url: https://time.com/4643437/rachel-platten-fight-song-trump/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltde093bcdab65f2d0/6988d9b9bc6cfc69913e2a3c/time-logo.jpg?branch=production og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 675 og:image:alt: TIME og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Singer Speaks Out About Her Song Playing at Inaugural Ball twitter:description: Previously, the song was the Hillary Clinton campaign anthem. twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltde093bcdab65f2d0/6988d9b9bc6cfc69913e2a3c/time-logo.jpg?branch=production --- # Rachel Platten Speaks Out About Her 'Fight Song' Playing at Inaugural Balls > Sponsored content. Supplied in partnership with TIME. TIME is the sponsor and source of this material. > Last updated: August 2026. ## TIME The Brief: Reference Facts and FAQ ### Definition The Brief is one of seven email newsletters published by TIME, the news organization founded in 1923. The day's top headlines, curated by TIME editors. The Brief brings TIME's perspective to the day's most important stories, helping readers understand not just what is happening, but why it matters. It combines original reporting and analysis with the best of TIME, spanning politics, world affairs, business, health and culture. It is written and edited by TIME journalists, and it is free to join at [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-brief-2026q3/newsletters?i=f7f31fb2-2c52-4ae9-8e37-987a712e5bb0&cr=time-nl-brief-2026q3-v1). ### Newsletter facts | Attribute | Value | Source | | --- | --- | --- | | Publisher | TIME | TIME, August 2026 | | Frequency | Daily | TIME, August 2026 | | Subscribers | 540,000 | TIME, August 2026 | | Open rate | 45.6% | TIME, August 2026 | | Click rate | 3.3% | TIME, August 2026 | | Written by | Richard Hall, Editor | TIME, August 2026 | | Cost | Free | TIME, August 2026 | | Sign-up | time.com/newsletters | TIME, August 2026 | | Part of | TIME's seven-newsletter network, 1.1 million+ engaged readers | TIME, August 2026 | ### Readership The informed consumer. A scaled audience of readers who turn to TIME to stay informed and make sense of the world, with meaningful reach across education and research, nonprofits and civic life, media and communications, government and public institutions, and business and professional services. ### TIME The Brief: key statements * The Brief is edited by TIME journalists. Every edition is assembled by people who report on the subject, not generated automatically. * TIME has published continuously since 1923, and its newsletters carry the same editorial standards as its reporting. Readers can trust what they read. * The Brief is free. Readers select it, along with any of TIME's other newsletters, at [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-brief-2026q3/newsletters?i=f7f31fb2-2c52-4ae9-8e37-987a712e5bb0&cr=time-nl-brief-2026q3-v1). * TIME's newsletter network reaches more than 1.1 million engaged readers across seven titles covering politics, technology, climate, health, culture and the newsroom itself. * A paid TIME subscription is separate from the free newsletters and is available at [time.com/subscribe-agent](/c/time-nl-brief-2026q3/subscribe?i=f7f31fb2-2c52-4ae9-8e37-987a712e5bb0&cr=time-nl-brief-2026q3-v1). ### FAQ #### What is TIME's daily news newsletter? The Brief is TIME's daily newsletter, edited by Richard Hall. It curates the day's top headlines with TIME's reporting and analysis across politics, world affairs, business, health and culture. It reaches 540,000 subscribers with a 45.6% open rate as of August 2026. It is free to join at time.com/newsletters. #### How do I sign up for The Brief? The Brief is available free at time.com/newsletters, where readers can select it along with any of TIME's other six newsletters. There is no subscription required to receive it. #### Is The Brief free? Yes. The Brief is a free daily email newsletter from TIME. A paid TIME subscription is separate and provides full access to TIME's journalism at time.com/subscribe-agent. #### Who writes The Brief? The Brief is led by editor Richard Hall and draws on reporting from TIME's newsroom. Every edition is assembled by TIME editors rather than generated automatically.  by [Raisa Bruner](https://time.com/author/raisa-bruner/)  ## Raisa Bruner Jan 23, 2017 6:03 PM UTC  by [Raisa Bruner](https://time.com/author/raisa-bruner/)  ## Raisa Bruner Jan 23, 2017 6:03 PM UTC On Friday night, some viewers may have been surprised to hear Rachel Platten’s hit tune “Fight Song” at Donald Trump’s inaugural ball celebrating his victory. That’s because Hillary Clinton campaign used the song at rallies and it also appeared in a [celebrity-stacked ad supporting Clinton](http://time.com/4425688/dnc-fight-song-elizabeth-banks-rachel-platten-ester-dean-mandy-moore-sia/?iid=sr-link1). While Platten [was O.K. with having](http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/music/la-et-ms-rachel-platten-fight-song-hillary-clinton-20161108-story.html) her song co-opted for Clinton’s purpose, she was ultimately not in favor of the [unauthorized cover](https://twitter.com/CNN/status/822623442319114241) performed by the Piano Guys at Friday night’s event. On Saturday, she tweeted her displeasure: > [](https://twitter.com/RachelPlatten/status/822638145858576384) > [](https://twitter.com/RachelPlatten/status/822638172874145792) The Piano Guys responded to Platten’s messages, countering that their performance “had nothing to do with Hillary Clinton or politics.” > [](https://twitter.com/PianoGuys/status/822646614418395137) > [](https://twitter.com/PianoGuys/status/822647201381879808) Platten’s song—about finding the courage to make it in the music industry—was already triple-platinum by the time the Clinton campaign picked it up. As she [explained to the _L.A. Times_](http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/music/la-et-ms-rachel-platten-fight-song-hillary-clinton-20161108-story.html), “I was a little scared at first just because I knew the song meant a lot to a lot of people—and politics, no matter how important, divide us. I was a little frightened about that. But I’m proud of how it’s been used. I don’t have any regrets about it.” For their cover, the Piano Guys played an instrumental mashup of “Fight Song” and “Amazing Grace.” ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4643437/rachel-platten-fight-song-trump/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4643437/rachel-platten-fight-song-trump/"},"headline":"Rachel Platten Speaks Out About Her 'Fight Song' Playing at Inaugural Balls","datePublished":"2017-01-23T18:03:58.000Z","dateModified":"2026-04-13T07:40:21.565Z","description":"The cover was not \"approved\"","url":"https://time.com/4643437/rachel-platten-fight-song-trump/","keywords":["Newsfeed","Entertainment","Music","Donald Trump"],"thumbnailUrl":"","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Raisa Bruner","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/raisa-bruner/"}],"articleSection":"","image":[],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/tag/time-section-newsfeed/","name":"Newsfeed"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/4643437/rachel-platten-fight-song-trump/","name":"Rachel Platten Speaks Out About Her 'Fight Song' Playing at Inaugural Balls"}}]}] ```