“It’s a bit of a hectic day,” Rufus Wainwright tells Rolling Stone. Work is part of the reason: The singer, songwriter, pianist, and pop cabaret icon is opening a multi-night stand at New York’s Carlyle Café tonight. But it’s also a busy moment thanks to an unusual event last night.
When several audience members at a Trump rally in Pennsylvania required medical attention, the former president and his team opted to pause the rally and blast some of his favorite songs over the PA. What followed were a surreal 30 minutes in which Trump, South Dakota governor Kristi Noem, and various acolytes stood on stage, swaying and sometimes singing along to, among others, Guns N’ Roses’ “November Rain,” the Village People’s ”YMCA,” Sinéad O’Connor’s version of “Nothing Compares 2 U,” and Wainwright’s take on Leonard Cohen’s “Hallelujah.”
Earlier today, Wainwright — a longtime Trump critic — issued a statement that read, in part, “I in no way condone this and was mortified.” “Witnessing Trump and his supporters commune with this music last night was the height of blasphemy,” he added.
He also carved out time to talk to RS about what may be the strangest use of “Hallelujah,” especially his well-known version, that he can recall, and its repercussions for him.
When did you first become aware of the use of your recording of “Hallelujah” during that rally?
I didn’t see it live, but a friend sent me a link. It was pretty shocking. At first, I thought they were just playing my song — or Leonard’s song, I should say — and people would be walking around and shaking hands and ending a rally or something. But I when I actually watched it, and saw everybody praying and enraptured by my voice and Leonard’s lyrics…. It was pretty eerie and disturbing. Oddly enough, it was also revealing, in a sense, because Trump is obviously a sick and spiritually bankrupt person and is probably in need of healing. He’s someone who needs redemption probably more than anyone else. So it was pretty intense.
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Yes, they were singing it as it if were an Evangelical hymn.
People do that with this song. I don’t think you can read too much into it, but if one was to try to get something from it, these people are on their knees spiritually, and they need help. They have to deal with that before they rule the world. [Slight chuckle.] I only watched it once. I couldn’t really watch it twice.
Compared to all the unusual places “Hallelujah” has popped up, whether your version or others, where does this rank?
It’s pretty weird. This is right up there, maybe at the top of weirdness. And this song has been a lot of places. So why do they have to use my version, though? Why couldn’t Jeff Buckley and Leonard Cohen bitch about it in the afterlife?
Sometimes they have an opera singer perform it. But not last night. Why do you think they did use your recording?
Well, my version is, I think, the most commercial version because of the Shrek soundcheck. It was on that album. A lot of people think I wrote that song, which I’m flattered about, but I didn’t, obviously.
What are your concerns about people hearing your voice on that song at a Trump rally?
This is my first time ever experiencing this, so I’m kind of processing it. It’s very mixed for me. I’ve never had any big hits, you know, so part of me is like, “Wow, I guess something I did is impactful in a wide, wide range.” [Chuckles.] Unfortunately, it’s showing itself in this manner. What I’m a little scared about — which I have to kind of constantly remind myself of — is that there are people who will just immediately think I support Trump. They won’t be able to understand the complexities of all of this, and that’s disturbing. So I I had to come out with that statement immediately, because people will go there, which is wild to me.
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Are you planning to mention this incident during your upcoming shows in New York?
I don’t think there’s any way I can get around it.
How about playing the song?
I think I’m going to give it a slight hiatus. Not forever, but let it cool off a little as a result of this. I’ll wait until after the election.
