‘THIS IS ILLEGAL’: Tom Petty Estate Torches Kari Lake For ‘Stealing’ Hit Song To Promote ‘FAILED CAMPAIGN’

The estate of late rock legend Tom Petty has lashed out at losing Arizona gubernatorial candidate Kari Lake for “stealing” Petty’s hit “I Won’t Back Down” to “promote (her) failed campaign.”

Lake’s campaign isn’t just Free Fallin’, it has fallen — Lake has lost to Governor-elect Katie Hobbs. But Lake was still clinging to false hope Wednesday when she posted a captionless video to Twitter that featured footage from her campaign — and Mr. Petty’s iconic recording as the soundtrack:

On Friday, the Petty estate posted an all-caps statement ripping Lake and threatening legal action:

THE TOM PETTY ESTATE AND OUR PARTNERS WERE SHOCKED TO FIND OUT THAT TOM’S SONG “I WON’T BACK DOWN” WAS STOLEN AND USED WITHOUT PERMISSION OR A LICENSE TO PROMOTE KARI LAKE’S FAILED CAMPAIGN.

THIS IS ILLEGAL. WE ARE EXPLORING ALL OF OUR LEGAL OPTIONS TO STOP THIS UNAUTHORIZED USE AND TO PROHIBIT FUTURE MISAPPROPRIATIONS OF TOM’S BELOVED ANTHEM.

THANK YOU TO ALL OF THE FANS WHO BROUGHT THIS TO OUR ATTENTION AND WHO HELP US PROTECT HIS LEGACY EVERY DAY.

Lake has since deleted the video.

In 2020, the Petty family issued a more detailed statement about then-President Donald Trump’s use of the song:

Tom Petty’s song “I Won’t Back Down” was used today at Donald Trump’s campaign rally in Tulsa, OK.

Trump was in no way authorized to use this song to further a campaign that leaves too many Americans and common sense behind.

Both the late Tom Petty and his family firmly stand against racism and discrimination of any kind. Tom Petty would never want a song of his used for a campaign of hate. He liked to bring people together.

Tom wrote this song for the underdog, for the common man and for EVERYONE. We want to make it clear that we believe everyone is free to vote as they like, think as they like, but the Petty family doesn’t stand for this. We believe in America and we believe in democracy. But Donald Trump is not representing the noble ideals of either. We would hate for fans that are marginalized by this administration to think we were complicit in this usage. Concurrently, we have issued an official cease and desist notice to the Trump campaign.

Adria, Annakim, Dana and Jane Petty

Watch Tom Petty’s official video for “I Won’t Back Down” via Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers on YouTube.