The legal battle between Canadian music icon Neil Young and U.S. President Donald Trump’s campaign has ended.
Young filed a lawsuit in August for copyright infringement over what he said was unlicensed playing of Rockin’ in the Free World and Devil’s Sidewalk at rallies and political events
At the time, his lawyers said Young did not want his music “used as a ‘theme song’ for a divisive, un-American campaign of ignorance and hate.”
U.S. President Donald Trump acknowledges supporters during a Make America Great Again rally at the Civic Center in Charleston, West Virginia on August 21, 2018. (Reuters/Leah Millis)
On Monday, his lawyers dismissed the case “with prejudice,” meaning it cannot be brought up again.
Lawyers for both sides did not immediately respond to separate requests and it was not immediately clear if the case had been settled out of court.
Young had been seeking “statutory damages in the maximum amount allowed” — up to US$150,000.
Last January, Young, who was raised in Canada but has spent most of his adult life in the United States, became a U.S. citizen because, he said, he wanted to vote in the 2020 election.
Neil Young performs at the BottleRock Napa Valley Music Festival at Napa Valley Expo in Napa, Calif., on May 25 2019. (Amy Harris/Invision via AP)
Young, who maintains his Canadian citizenship, has long been involved in the environmental movement.
In 1995, he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a solo artist.
Two years later, he was inducted as a member of Buffalo Springfield, famous for their song For What It’s Worth.
In 2009, he was named an officer of the Order of Canada.
With files from CBC News, Reuters
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