Lessons from Lady Gaga: Why trendjacking without rights hits a bad note

Trendjacking has become the second nature to brands especially during massive cultural moments. In Singapore, concerts often feel like the Super Bowl of brand relevance, as marketers rush to stay visible in the feeds and minds of fans.

The city-state’s role as the only Asia stop for many global tours has only fuelled the trend. When Taylor Swift brought her Eras Tour to Singapore last year, fans flew in from across the region, and so did brands. Malaysia-based pimple patch brand dododots gave away thousands of free heart and star-shaped pimple patches across all six nights, while Singapore brands filled social feeds with posts mimicking Swift's album covers and concert creatives - many even using her songs. 

Within the same year, British band Coldplay played four sold-out nights in Singapore, compared to just one in the Philippines and Bangkok. Similarly, brands jumped in on the fun too. However, when posts around Lady Gaga’s recent four-night concert in Singapore (18 to 24 May) were reportedly flagged and removed on Instagram, marketers were caught off guard.

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Checks by MARKETING-INTERACTIVE found that some of these brands used her silhouette or name while others leaned on Instagram’s native music feature to soundtrack their content. Posts that have remained online however, did not directly reference the artist or included her likeness. 

The big question quickly surfaced - why Lady Gaga, and why now?

According to legal and industry experts, the issue boils down to one thing: ownership.

“Social media users should not think that they are entitled to use an artiste‘s music or performance without the artiste’s permission. If they do so, they might well be infringing that artiste’s rights and their content may well be subject to be taken down,” said Gilbert Leong, senior partner and head of Dentons Rodyk's property and technology practice group. The lawyer added that: 

Whether the content is or is not taken down would really depend on how vigilant that artiste is in forcing his or her rights.

While many artists or rights holders may be more lenient, Leong said the risks of trendjacking are real, especially when commercial intent is involved. “Trendjacking is really a polite term for free riding and brands would be wrong to free ride on something that they did not create, own or pay for. If they trendjack, they may experience take downs of their content on the basis that such content infringes the copyright or some other right of another party," explained Leong. 

Mitigation of such risk is really quite simple, said Leong: "Don't take or use what is not yours." 

Despite the availability of tools such as TikTok and Instagram’s music libraries, commercial use remains a legal grey area. Many marketers may assume that if a song is available in a platform's library, it’s cleared for use, especially in short-form content, but this isn't always the case.

Moving beyond surface-level references

In fact, brands looking to engage with cultural moments need to move beyond surface-level references and think more strategically, said Shufen Goh, co-founder of independent global marketing consultancy R3. “The best brand responses to cultural moments aren’t about jumping on trends for the sake of it, but about being intentional,” she added.

Moreover, referencing pop culture only works when it adds creative relevance and aligns with the brand’s voice. "The most powerful content goes beyond mere likeness; it taps into shared emotions and cultural energy in a way that feels authentic to the brand," explained Goh.

"Even with music libraries, commercial use is not always straightforward. It is increasingly important for brands to understand the regulatory landscape they operate, to safeguard against missteps and ensure their content resonates while standing on solid ground," she added. 

At the heart of it, Goh believes that creativity remains the key to effective marketing as it is the most proven path to differentiating with relevance: 

Brands that lead with originality and insight earn the freedom of showing up boldly without relying on borrowed fame.

Meanwhile, MARKETING-INTERACTIVE reached out to Meta to clarify how content takedown policies are enforced, particularly around music and celebrity likeness. A spokesperson said the company is unable to verify the issue. 

However, according to a statement published on Meta's transparency centre, the social media giant said: "Meta takes intellectual property rights seriously and is committed to protecting these rights while promoting expression, creativity and innovation in a space built on community trust. For this reason, we enforce a policy against posting content that violates someone else's intellectual property rights, including copyright, trademark or other legal rights." 

As trendjacking becomes more common and copyright enforcement more aggressive, experts agree that brands must weigh the legal, reputational and creative risks before jumping in. For marketers, the takeaway is clear: riding cultural moments may win reach, but without the rights, it’s a risk few can afford.

Photo courtesy of Qi Hao (@qhventures), Instagram.

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