Jimmy Fallon tackled the escalating military conflict in Iran on Wednesday’s “Tonight Show” in a way that cheekily mocked the Trump administration in more ways than one.
The late night host explained the U.S. and Israel’s war in Iran by pulling soundbites from popular songs without the artists’ permission — much like the Trump White House has been known to do on social media before getting called out by the likes of Sabrina Carpenter and The White Stripes.
“The White House keeps getting called out by musical artists for using their songs without permission in videos about Iran,” Fallon said during his monologue, during which he focused on the events that have taken place in the 12 days of the Iran war. “It’s not good, but it make us realize songs are a helpful way to explain the situation in the Middle East. I’ll show you what I mean.”
That’s when he pivoted to his band’s stage and began playing out clips from 4 Non Blondes’ “What’s Up?”, Harry Styles’ “As It Was,” “Chappell Roan’s “Pink Pony Club,” Barenaked Ladies’ “One Week” and more.
“Well, guys, it’s been two weeks since Trump invaded Iran. At first, everyone was like … What’s going on?” Fallon said. “The whole country was looking at Trump like … What kind of pills are you on? Even Republicans saw what was happening and said … God, what you done?”
Watch the bit below:
“Anyway, just remember, Trump probably started all of this for one reason: to make the Epstein files go … Bye, bye, bye,” Fallon concluded, playing out *NSYNC’s 2000 hit.
Several musicians have called out Trump for using their content without their consent.
On Monday, singer-songwriter Kesha criticized the White House for using her song “Blow” in a video about the U.S. military, calling it “disgusting and inhumane.” In December 2025, Carpenter blasted the White house over its use of her song “Juno” for a video promoting immigration raids, also calling the move “evil and disgusting.” And even the Pokémon Company formally pushed back against the U.S. Department of Homeland Security in May 2025 for using footage and music from its animated series without permission.
Watch the “Tonight Show” clip above.
