Sergio Gor Walks to 'Hold On, I'm Comin' in Delhi – After Trump Was Sued for Using it

New Delhi: As Sergio Gor, US ambassador-designate to India, climbed the steps to the stage at Roosevelt House before addressing mediapersons in Delhi, a familiar song played on the loudspeakers. 

Don't you ever be sad

Lean on me when times are bad

When the day comes and you are down

In a river of trouble and about to drown

Just hold on, I'm comin'

Hold on, I'm comin'

Loaded lyrics, perhaps, to herald the coming of a new US ambassador at a time when the country continues to levy 50% tariffs on Indian goods. ‘Hold On, I’m Comin’’, the 1966s soul hit sung by Sam & Dave, was widely used by the Trump campaign as an exit song at his rallies before his 2024 re-election – until a court categorically told him to stop. The estate of Isaac Hayes – who co-wrote the song with David Porter – sued the Trump campaign after they ignored repeated requests to stop using Hayes’ music. The court said the campaign cannot use the song until the copyright case filed by Hayes’ estate is settled.

While the Trump campaign said they would comply and stopped using the song at rallies, Gor did not follow the same logic in New Delhi. It also wasn’t the only song he played for the present journalists and embassy staff; after his eight-minute speech, another song that has become an ‘unlikely Trump anthem’ – ‘YMCA’ – was played.

Hayes isn’t the only musician whose music has been used by Trump and his allies without permission, to spread a political message that its creators are unlikely to have agreed with. At least 26 musicians, including Adele, Beyonce, Queen, Sabrina Carpenter and Rihanna, have said that Trump’s election campaign material and rallies use their music without permission. Several of them have also denounced Trump’s politics and policies in their statements protesting the use of their music. 

Using music that the US president has been formally asked not to was not the only breach of norms on Monday. As The Wire has reported, Gor’s event was a ceremony that broke with Indian diplomatic protocol and American ambassadorial tradition alike. Since he has not yet presented his credentials to the Indian president, Gor remains ‘ambassador-designate’ – and it is convention for foreign envoys not to make any public appearances before this happens.

The 39-year-old Trump campaign insider was announced as the next US ambassador in August last year, seven months after the second presidential inauguration. One of Trump’s most trusted loyalists, The Washington Post had described him as “the most powerful man you’ve never heard of”, noting his pivotal role in overseeing the installation of some 4,000 political appointees in the administration.

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