An incensed Jess Glynne has hit out at the White House after its official account jumped on the Jet2 Holidays viral trend to tweet about deportations.
The travel operator’s earworm of a jingle, which mixes Glynne’s chart-topping 2015 song Hold My Hand with a catchy voice over from former Hollyoaks actress Zoe Lister, has become this summer’s unexpected social media trend.
TikTok users in particular, from places as far flung as the Philippines and people including Hollywood star Jeff Goldblum, have enjoyed filming their own versions and joke clips while using the trending audio.
In a bizarre turn of events, the official government X account of President Donald Trump’s White House jumped on the trend on Tuesday, playing the jingle over the top of a video showing people in handcuffs being ushered onto ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement) deportation flights in America.
The White House’s X post, where the accompanying video now has 11.5million views, is captioned: ‘When ICE books you a one-way Jet2 holiday to deportation. Nothing beats it!’
Singer Glynne took to her Instagram Stories on Wednesday to share her outrage over the White House involving itself in the light-hearted trend with its own twist.
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‘This post honestly makes me sick,’ she began. ‘My music is about love, unity, and spreading positivity – never about division or hate.’
Voice actress Lister also condemned the move, posting a picture on Instagram of herself leaning her chin in her hand.
‘What can be done about @whitehouse using @jet2pics sound and my voiceover to promote their nasty agenda?’ she wrote alongside her Story.
To keep things light she then followed up with a clip of herself pulling a face and sliding her sunglasses over her eyes as the caption read: ‘When your voiceover demands that you comment on US politics.’
The White Houses video also shows immigration officers dragging people out of vans and parading them onto planes bound for foreign countries.
It also features a screenshot of the US government app CBP Home, which is being used to allow migrants currently in the United States to self-deport, before ending with Trump smirking and giving a thumbs up to the camera.
ICE is aiming for 3,000 arrests of immigrants in the US per day, with the video a clear attempt to promote Trump’s migration strategy.
However, it was met with shock online, as users branded it ‘disgusting’ and ‘insane’, with Gavin Wilson adding: ‘The world is losing its grip on reality.’
Journalist Will Lancaster revealed he had to ‘double, and then triple check, at who [sic.] posted this’.
‘It actually IS the official White House page, using a British airline advert trend to boast about deporting immigrants from their country, even including a Trump cameo at the end.
‘Lost for words,’ he added.
Glynne, 35, and Lister , 43, finally met one another in person earlier this month when they appeared on Capital Breakfast with Jordan North, to celebrate being the sound of the British heatwave summer of 2025.
The I’ll Be There singer Jess shared that she was grateful for the renewed interest in the song, revealing: ‘Yeah, it’s a massive surprise, 100%. It’s the most amazing thing to see though.’
She then performed her own version of Lister’s famous voiceover, reading the full script out in the studio: ‘Nothing beats a Jet2 Holiday. And right now, you can save £50 per person. That’s £200 off for a family of four!’
Metro has contacted the White House for comment.
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