September 11, 2020 | 7:27pm
President Trump has drawn heat form stars such as Bruce Springsteen, the Rolling Stones and John Fogerty for using their songs before his rallies, but one composer has no problem with it.
Victor Willis of the Village People says Trump is welcome to continue using “YMCA” at his re-election rallies — he just wants to see the commander in chief do the iconic dance.
“’YMCA’ is everybody’s anthem and go-to song for fun. As for the president’s use, I have not granted permission for use at his rallies because permission is not required,” Willis told Bloomberg News through a spokesman.
“If I were a Trump hater maybe I’d sue him simply out of spite,” Willis said. “I am not, and I’m not going to have my lawyers sue the president. But he should at least do the ‘YMCA’ dance while he’s at it.”
Recently, Trump stopped playing The Rolling Stones’ song “You Can’t Always Get What You Want” as he walks off stage at rallies — replacing it with “YMCA.”
Trump also routinely plays “Macho Man” from the Village People at rallies.
Although “YMCA” is a go-to hit for MAGA rallies, the 1978 song also is reputed to be a secret celebration of gay experiences at Young Men’s Christian Association facilities. But Willis, who is straight, says the song is a sincere tribute to innocent fun.
“The lyrics were written by me as an expression of urban youths having fun at the YMCA. The words were crafted by me to be taken any number of ways but not specific to gays. It’s much broader than that,” Willis said in 2014.
Willis holds 50 percent of the copyright to “YMCA” and in 2015 told the San Diego Union-Tribune it “is still grossing millions, per year — just that one song — globally.”