Donald Trump is once again tying himself to the resurgence of Village People’s ‘Y.M.C.A.’, claiming his now viral dance moves helped drag the disco staple back onto the Billboard charts.
Speaking at a May 1st appearance at The Villages retirement community in Florida, the U.S. president pointed to the track’s late 2024 chart run as proof, according to Trump, his campaign trail antics played a direct role in pushing the song back into heavy rotation more than four decades after it first landed.
“That song was No. 5 32 years ago, and it went to No. 1 32 years later,” Trump said during the speech. “It went to No. 1 for months during the last months of the campaign.”
The timeline’s shaky, but the spike itself is real. ‘Y.M.C.A.’ did climb back to No. 1 on Billboard’s Top Dance/Electronic Digital Song Sales chart for two weeks in November 2024, fuelled by its constant use at Trump rallies, originally released in 1978, the track peaked at No. 2 on the Hot 100 and has lingered in pop culture ever since (per billboard)
A campaign soundtrack that won’t quit
Trump’s rallies turned the song into a strange second life moment, fist pumps, awkward hip swings, and a crowd that either leaned in or cringed out, depending on where you stood. Either way, it kind of stuck.
Village People founder Victor Willis addressed the situation late last year, explaining why he ultimately allowed the continued use of the track after initially pushing back in 2020. He said the song had “benefited greatly” from the renewed exposure, both in sales and chart movement.
“Therefore, I’m glad I allowed the President Elect’s continued use of Y.M.C.A.,” Willis wrote. “And I thank him for choosing to use my song.”
Even Melania isn’t sold
Not everyone in Trump’s orbit is backing the routine, he admitted during the same speech that his wife isn’t exactly cheering him on.
“She hates when I dance to what is sometimes referred to as the gay national anthem,” Trump said. “She hates it.”
He doubled down with a laugh, adding, “We love that song. But [Melania] goes, ‘Darling, please.’ You know, she’s a very elegant woman. She goes, ‘Darling, please don’t dance. It’s not presidential.’ I said, ‘It may not be presidential, but I’m leading by 20 points in the polls or something.’ ”
Trump wrapped the event the same way he has countless times before, launching into the now signature routine as ‘Y.M.C.A.’ blasted through the speakers. Love it or hate it, the moment keeps looping, and so does the song.
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