Minneapolis band Semisonic said the White House “missed the point” when it used the band’s 1998 song “Closing Time” in a social media video Monday showing shackled migrants being deported.
The 17-second clip begins by playing the lyrics “You don’t have to go home, but you can’t stay here” as seemingly Latino men are handcuffed.
It ends with deportees being paraded behind a Border Patrol vehicle while the Grammy nominated song’s “I know who I want to take me home” chorus plays.
🎶You don’t have to go home but you can’t stay here🎶 @CBP pic.twitter.com/yWWhlvKQrb
— The White House (@WhiteHouse) March 17, 2025
In a statement, Semisonic said the use of their hit was a total miss.
“We did not authorize or condone the White House’s use of our song in any way. And no, they didn’t ask,” the band told the Associated Press. “The song is about joy and possibilities and hope, and they have missed the point entirely.”
Semisonic’s music video for “Closing Time” enjoyed heavy MTV play when the song hit No. 4 on Billboard’s Adult Alternative Airplay chart. The video showed the band’s singer trying unsuccessfully searching for a love interested as bars are closing. Fans eager to hear the song live in the New York area can catch Semisonic in Lewiston on Aug. 15 or New Haven, Conn. a night earlier.
The band stopped recording in 2001, but released new material in 2020, according to Stereogum. In between, frontman Dan Wilson reportedly wrote for artists including Taylor Swift, Adele and John Legend.