“Lose Yourself”
Eminem Bans Presidential Candidate Ramaswamy From Rapping His Hit
Republican Vivek Ramaswamy is running for the 2024 presidential nomination
© Stefani Reynolds / AFP
The Republican presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy recently surprised the audience with a show and rapped to Eminem’s song “Lose Yourself” – much to the displeasure of the musician.
Vivek Ramaswamy raps Eminem’s “Lose Yourself” at carnival
Earlier this month, a video of Ramaswamy rapping to Eminem’s play “Lose Yourself” at a carnival in Des Moines, Iowa, circulated online. “Vivek just took the stage and banged it on. Unfortunately for the American people, we have to leave the rapping to the real Slim Shady,” Ramaswamy’s campaign spokeswoman Tricia McLaughlin told Politico about Eminem’s move.
Ramaswamy was already rapping under the stage name “Da Vek” while he was studying at Harvard. As the most dedicated Trump defender, the young biotech entrepreneur surprisingly made it to third place in polls of Republican candidates.
Eminem is the latest in a long line of artists who have asked a US presidential candidate to stop playing their music during the campaign. During the last two US elections, musicians such as Bruce Springsteen, Pharrell Williams, Rihanna, Aerosmith, Adele and Elton John had complained that their songs were used at Donald Trump’s campaign events without permission. The Rolling Stones have even threatened to sue if their well-known hit “You Can’t Always Get What You Want” is still played at rallies.
And Springsteen, a longtime Democratic activist, has been particularly adept at banning candidates from using his songs. Ronald Reagan, Bob Dole and Pat Buchanan were also banned from using “Born in the USA” during their campaigns.