Axl Rose says 'loopholes' allows Trump to use Guns N'Roses music at rallies despite band's protests

The Guns N' Roses frontman says the band has tried unsuccessfully to stop Trump from using its songs

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Axl Rose says license "loopholes" enable Donald Trump to play Guns N' Roses songs during his rallies, despite the band's efforts to stop him.

The singer took to Twitter on Sunday to clarify the group's position, saying his phone had been "blowing up" with messages from people who had heard his music playing at some of the president's events.

"Just so ya know... GNR like a lot of artists opposed to the unauthorized use of their music at political events has formally requested [our] music not [be] used at Trump rallies or Trump-associated events," Rose wrote.

Despite this request, he said, rules in place at the venues in which Trump hosts his rallies enable him to keep using the tunes even if the band has voiced its opposition.

"Unfortunately the Trump campaign is using loopholes in the various venues' blanket performance licenses which were not intended for such craven political purposes, without the songwriters' consent," Rose added.

He made no secret of his disdain for the set-up, writing: "Can you say 's***bags'?!"

Blanket licenses enable venues to pay a flat fee in exchange for the rights to use a specific catalogue of songs, without tracking nor reporting each individual song every time it is played.

Radio stations and venues where music is frequently played during group events typically acquire blanket licenses for convenience.

Rose said he somewhat enjoys the "irony" of Trump supporters listening to "a bunch of anti Trump music at his rallies". "But I don’t imagine a lot of 'em really get that or care," he added.

The Guns N' Roses frontman, who also joined AC/DC as the band's lead singer in 2016, explained he decided to speak out after receiving comments about 'Sweet Child O' Mine' being played at a Trump rally in West Virginia on Friday.

"And when [your] phone’s blowin' up cuz peeps [are] seein' / hearin' 'Sweet Child' on the news at a rally... as a band we felt we should clarify [our] position. Peace!" he wrote.

Rose is one of a growing number of musicians who have publicly tried to bar the president from using their songs.

After Rihanna's 'Please Don't Stop the Music' was played at a rally in Chattanooga, Tennessee, the singer said on Twitter her song wouldn't be heard at "those tragic rallies" for "much longer".

Last month, Pharrell Williams sent Trump a cease-and-desist letter after his song 'Happy' was played at an Indiana rally, in the hours following the Pittsburgh synagogue shooting that left 11 people dead.

Mick Jagger has previously explained that he's unable to bar Trump from using songs by the Rolling Stones at his gatherings, despite the group's requests.