From ‘never Trump’ to running mate: Catchy remix of JD Vance’s political U-turn becomes TikTok sensation

JD Vance’s transformation from a vocal critic of Donald Trump to his running mate in the upcoming election has captured the nation’s attention—and not just in the usual ways. The Ohio senator, who once declared himself a “never Trump guy” during the 2016 presidential race, now finds himself standing beside the very man he once disapproved of.
The irony of this political reversal has not gone unnoticed, especially by the creators of a viral TikTok hit.DJ duo Casa Di and Steve Terrell have taken a 22-second audio clip from Vance’s 2016 interview with Charlie Rose—where he clearly states, “I’m a never Trump guy. I never liked him”—and combined it with the beat of Petey Pablo’s “Freek-a-Leek.” The result is a remix that has taken TikTok by storm, garnering over 40 million views and being featured in more than 8,500 videos within just a month.

The catchy track has resonated deeply with Americans, many of whom have shared and reshared the video, participating in dance trends and lip-sync challenges. Even @KamalaHQ, the official account of Vice President Kamala Harris’s campaign, joined in, sharing the video with a wry nod to the ongoing political drama.

TikTok, a platform notorious for its rapid viral trends, has become an unexpected battleground for political messaging, despite the platform’s prohibition on political advertising.
This isn’t the only political remix making waves on TikTok. Another popular clip features Harris quoting her mother during a speech last year, asking, “You think you just fell out of a coconut tree?” before the audio transitions into a hip-hop beat repeating the phrase, “Trump 2024.”
The juxtaposition of serious political dialogue with catchy music has created a new genre of political content, one that is shaping the way younger generations engage with the upcoming election.