Jess Glynne has said she feels “sick” that the White House has used the viral Jet2holiday advert featuring her song as the audio to a video promoting deportations.
The White House posted a clip on X on Wednesday showing handcuffed people being escorted by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) onto a GlobalX flight.
Jet2’s advert featuring Glynne’s 2015 single Hold my Hand, and a cheery voiceover saying “nothing beats a Jet2 holiday” – which has become a meme – is played over the video.
Zoe Lister, the advert’s voiceover actress, told the BBC she would “never condone my voiceover being used” to promote what she called “Trump and his abhorrent policies”.
“The Jet2 meme has spread a lot of joy and humour around the world but the White House video shows that Trump has neither,” she added.
Responding to the clip, Glynne said on Instagram that her music “is about love, unity and spreading positivity – never about division or hate”.
The White House post on X was captioned: “When ICE books you a one-way Jet2 holiday to deportation. Nothing beats it!”
It has been met by some with criticism – one user said the clip was “embarrassing and unprofessional”, while another said that it “shows a real lack of humanity”.
Others have praised Trump for his stance on immigration.
It’s not the first time the Trump administration has posted memes on its social media account.
Earlier this month, an image with the president’s face superimposed on Superman’s face was shared on the account with the caption: “Truth. Justice. The American Way. Superman Trump.”
A few weeks ago, the administration posted on X saying, “Nowhere in the constitution does it say we can’t post banger memes.”
President Trump has recently committed $170bn for border and immigration enforcement, including $45bn for detention. ICE, a federal law enforcement agency, will see its funding grow by $76.5bn over five years.
‘Politicians shouldn’t use this’
The Jet2holiday advert, which went viral at the start of the summer, has been used in more than two million videos on TikTok.
People have used the audio to share funny and chaotic holiday videos – one of the most watched is of a woman on a rollercoaster who gets hit in the chest by a seagull.
The sound has also been put over disastrous moments such as plane fights, holiday mishaps and failed travel plans.
Lister has been working with Jet2holidays for a number of years and does all of the company’s voiceovers, from the security announcements on the planes to the voice on the phone lines.
She previously told the BBC she loves the fact that the advert has gone viral. Lister and Glynne recently met on Capital FM, and the singer said the viral success of the advert was “a massive surprise”.
“It’s the most amazing thing to see, though,” she added.
Lister said she doesn’t approve of politicians and similar public figures using the soundtrack.
“That’s just not the vibe – it’s meant to be funny and a way for people to share ridiculous things that happen to them.
“Someone serious like a politician using it to push their political agenda is not something I agree with,” she said earlier this month.
Lister said she can’t believe the advert has gone viral and often hears people listening to the sound when she’s out in public.
“It’s hilarious that I’m now being booked for gigs and festivals, people can’t get enough of it.”
The BBC has contacted Jet2 Holidays for comment.
Glynne joins a list of musicians who have publicly opposed Trump using their music over the past years.
Last summer, Abba complained after their hits, including The Winner Takes It All were played at one of Trump’s presidential campaign rallies. They requested that the videos be removed and taken down.
The estate of Sinéad O’Connor has also asked Trump to stop using her music at his political rallies. Her estate told the BBC O’Connor would have been “disgusted, hurt and insulted” by his use of her music.
Similarly, Adele distanced herself from the president in 2016 after he played Rolling In The Deep as his “warm-up” music and lawyers for Aerosmith star Steven Tyler sent Trump’s campaign a cease-and-desist letter in 2015.
After he played the band’s hit single Dream On at numerous rallies around the US.
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