The Rolling Stones have distanced themselves from a growing controversy surrounding the soundtrack of the upcoming Melania documentary, disputing claims that the band approved the use of their classic track “Gimme Shelter”.
Per Variety, the dispute emerged after Melania producer Marc Beckman suggested in a recent interview that frontman Mick Jagger had personally supported the song’s inclusion in the film. This claim has been backed by sources close to the film who assert that he was directly involved.
However, this claim is now firmly rejected by representatives for the band. According to an unnamed source close to Jagger, neither he nor the Rolling Stones were involved in approving the licensing decision.
Instead, the agreement was handled directly through ABKCO, the company that controls the rights to much of the group’s pre-1971 catalogue.
ABKCO was founded by the late Allen Klein, a notoriously tough business manager who first became involved with the Stones in 1965 (and later the Beatles). When he parted company with the Stones in the early ‘70s, he walked away with the rights to the group’s pre-1971 recorded music, including “Gimme Shelter” and classics like “Satisfaction”, “Sympathy for the Devil”, “Jumpin’ Jack Flash”, “Honky Tonk Women”, and dozens more, which the company continues to administer.
The documentary, which follows Melania Trump in the lead-up to Donald Trump’s 2025 presidential inauguration, opens with the 1969 song – widely regarded as one of the Stones’ most politically charged recordings.
The source close to the band said the licensing arrangement was strictly a rights-holder transaction and did not involve creative consultation or endorsement from the musicians themselves.
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Additional controversy has also surfaced around the film’s soundtrack choices, with Radiohead guitarist Jonny Greenwood and filmmaker Paul Thomas Anderson previously criticising the use of music connected to Phantom Thread, arguing they were not properly consulted – a claim the producers deny.
“While Jonny Greenwood does not own the copyright in the score, Universal failed to consult Jonny on this third-party use which is a breach of his composer agreement,” a rep said. “As a result Jonny and Paul Thomas Anderson have asked for it to be removed from the documentary.”
Melania features other songs by Michael Jackson, Aretha Franklin, Elvis Presley, James Brown, and more.
