In the aftermath of a military parade held in Washington, D.C., on June 14, 2025, rumors circulated that the anti-military-draft song "Fortunate Son" by Creedence Clearwater Revival was played during the procession.
"Fortunate Son," a Vietnam War protest song about society's elite being able to dodge the draft while those less fortunate were forced to join up and ship out, was released in 1969.
Users on social media were quick to point out the irony of playing the song during a parade intended to celebrate the military but that also coincided with U.S. President Donald Trump's 79th birthday. Users spread alleged clips from the parade featuring the song on platforms such as X (archived), Bluesky (archived) and especially on Facebook (archived, archived).
The widespread nature of the rumor led many Snopes readers to also reach out via email asking if the song was really played during the parade.
The rumor that the song "Fortunate Son" was played during the military parade held on Trump's birthday was true.
It was performed by The U.S. Army Band Downrange, a segment of the Army Band that "supports the men and women of the Armed Services through popular music while reaching all audiences, young and old, with their continuously up-to-date repertoire of rock, pop, country, R&B, and inspirational signature patriotic arrangements that are popular with all listeners."
The parade is available to view on The White House YouTube channel, and the song can be heard around the 1 hour and 25 minute mark as the announcer introduces the 7th Infantry Division of the United States Army.
The official clip corresponds to the shortened version shared in various posts about the claim on social media (archived) and news outlets like C-SPAN.
Some users sharing the clip purported that the use of the song was an act of protest by the band considering the well-known meaning behind the tune, but there is no evidence that is the case.
Trump previously used "Fortunate Son" during his 2020 presidential campaign, and the song's author pointed out the irony at the time.
John Fogerty, the writer of "Fortunate Son," spoke out about Trump using his song for political rallies in 2020. In a video posted to his official Facebook page, Fogerty said the song was written after his own experience being drafted during the Vietnam War.
Fogarty explained, "Something I was very upset about was the fact that people of privilege — in other words, rich people, or people that had position — could use that to avoid the draft and not be taken into the military. I found it very upsetting that such a thing could occur, and that's why I wrote 'Fortunate Son.' That's really what the whole intent of the song (was)."
According to a 2016 report in The New York Times, Trump received five draft deferments in total, including one for "bone spurs" that his former lawyer Michael Cohen later testified was made up. Trump allegedly told Cohen, "'You think I'm stupid? I wasn't going to Vietnam.'"
In his video explaining the meaning behind "Fortunate Son," Fogerty added, "It's a song I could have written now. So I find it confusing, I would say, that the president has chosen to use my song for his political rallies when in fact it seems like he is probably the Fortunate Son."
Further, in a "cease and desist" message posted to X (archived) in 2020, Fogerty said, "I wrote this song because, as a veteran, I was disgusted that some people were allowed to be excluded from serving our country because they had access to political and financial privilege … The fact that Mr. Trump also fans the flames of hatred, racism and fear while rewriting recent history, is even more reason to be troubled by his use of my song."
Other songs played during the parade included Metallica's "Enter Sandman" and Heart's "Barricuda."
Nancy Wilson of Heart spoke out against the use of that band's song during the parade, posting to Instagram, "Earlier today, during a parade held in support of our nation's military and organized by President Donald Trump, the song 'Barracuda' by Heart was played without permission or authorization from us."
Snopes reached out to the White House for further comment and an official set list and was redirected to America 250, the group that organized the parade in question. This article will be updated if we receive a response.