Donald Trump Says He Could Have Been a Flutist

President Donald Trump has revealed he was a talented musician as a child and excelled at playing the flute.

In a wide-ranging interview for the Pod Force One podcast, Trump said he had a gift for music from an early age that he could have been a flutist.

"I had flute lessons! This is the first person who's ever asked me that question," he told The New York Post's Miranda Devine. "Can you believe it, I could've been a flutist. I didn't particularly like it, it wasn't for me."

'People Like the Music I Play'

He said that when he was aged 11 or 12 his mother and father took him for aptitude tests.

"They came up to my father and they said 'your son is brilliant at music, he'd be an incredible musician'. This is not what my father wanted to hear—this was not the greatest thing, you know! But I do have an ear for music … People like the music I play," he said.

The country singer Lee Greenwood, a friend of Trump's who is known for "God Bless the U.S.A" and has produced a version of the Bible by the same name with the president, said in March that the president was very musical.

"He's absolutely very creative and very artistic. I do not doubt that he has a great ear for music," Greenwood said at an event at the Kennedy Center in March.

Trump: I Think Elton John Is terrific

In the podcast, Trump spoke about the importance of music in his life.

"Music has been important. Also, it gives you energy … People that produce good music are really talented, it's not an easy thing to do," he said.

He said he liked different types of music: "I like country music a lot. I think Elton John is terrific. I think he's absolutely terrific. And there are some people that make it that I don't think are that talented."

Trump's Campaign Music

Trump used a variety of different campaign songs for his successful reelection bid, perhaps most memorably the Village People's iconic 'YMCA'.

At a town hall event in October 2024, Trump decided to stop taking questions from the audience and instead played music for 39 minutes.

The songs played included 'An American Trilogy' by Elvis Presley, 'Nothing Compares 2 U' from Sinéad O'Connor, 'YMCA' and 'Memory' from the Andrew Lloyd Webber musical Cats.

However, some artists tried to ban the then Republican nominee from using their music during campaign events.