On Friday the White House, with its customary insensitivity during Trump’s second term, shared on TikTok a video depicting the United States carrying out a bombing. The caption accompanying the post reads “Iran has been warned,” and the chosen music is “Firework,” Katy Perry’s classic, specifically the line “Boom, boom, boom.”
Katy Perry decided to respond this Saturday from X: “I am deeply outraged and angry to see that ‘Firework’ has been used on the White House’s TikTok account as a background track for footage of military strikes. I did not approve this, I was not asked, and I certainly do not tolerate it.”
She continues: “I wrote this song to be an anthem of hope, healing, and inner strength for people going through very dark personal moments. Seeing a message of self-esteem and uplift transformed into a soundtrack for destruction and violence is a total violation of everything my song represents. My music is to unite people, not to celebrate war.”
Katy Perry has lately made headlines for going viral with “The One That Got Away.” In fact, she released a compilation titled “The Ones That Got the Plays” which has just climbed to No. 9 on the UK charts, a new peak after 11 weeks.
Sitting at No. 13 on Spotify’s Global Artists chart, Katy Perry is at one of the high points of her career, despite the mixed reception of her latest albums and singles.
@whitehouse Iran has been warned. 🎆
♬ original sound – The White House
I am deeply appalled and angry to see “Firework” used on the @WhiteHouse TikTok account as a backing track for video footage of military strikes. I did not approve this, I was not asked, and I absolutely do not condone it.
I wrote this song to be an anthem of hope, healing, and…
— KATY PERRY (@katyperry) July 25, 2026
