Former President Donald Trump’s well-known campaign favorites — Lee Greenwood’s “God Bless the U.S.A.”, the Village People’s “Macho Man” and “Memory” from the 1983 original Broadway cast of “Cats” — blasted over the speakers at his July rally in St. Cloud.

And in the rolling hills of Eau Claire, Wis., Vice President and Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris roused supporters at Wednesday’s rally with Beyoncé's “Freedom”, Coolio’s “Gangsta’s Paradise” and Tracy Chapman’s “Fast Car.”

We analyzed over 30 songs we heard at the Minnesota and Wisconsin rallies. Here’s what we found.

The Trump campaign’s St. Cloud playlist featured many of the former president’s campaign staples, and largely favored classic rock from white male musicians and groups. The Harris campaign continued to develop its political mixtape for the new ticket in Eau Claire, and favored Black female musicians and pop music.

“They’re curating a playlist as they’re also trying to speak to and build on a particular kind of base,” said Elliott H. Powell, an associate professor of American Studies and Asian American Studies at the University of Minnesota who specializes in U.S. popular music, race, sexuality and politics. The identity of the party and the campaign is built into the music, he said.

Of the 34 songs collected from Trump’s St. Cloud rally, 27 were by white musicians or all-white groups, and 25 were by male musicians or all-male groups. The playlist mostly featured rock or pop-rock anthems —15 songs — with a handful of funk/soul, country and theater tracks, all largely from the 1960s, ′70s or ′80s.

The Republican’s classic rock playlist reinforces Trump’s lead slogan, “Make America Great Again,” by reminding listeners of a “nostalgic” sound period where “things were perfect,” Powell said.

“When we think about the ‘classic rock’ period, the ‘hard rock’ period, it was producing an image of rock that was white, that was male, that was masculine, and that was heterosexual,” he said.

Trump’s eclectic picks, songs from 1980s Broadway musicals or pop divas, may serve to court older demographics, like baby boomers or Generation X, Powell said. They also may reflect Trump’s music taste as an older candidate.

In St. Cloud, only four country songs were played during the rally. Trump walked on to “God Bless the U.S.A.” and his running mate, JD Vance, entered to “America First” by Merle Haggard. Haggard, who is white and Cherokee, was the only mixed-race artist included in the 34 songs.

Of the 32 songs collected from Harris’ Eau Claire rally, 13 were by solo female artists, nine by solo male artists. Seventeen were by Black musicians or all-Black groups, 10 by white artists or all-white groups, four by mixed-race artists or groups and one song by a Latina artist — “Let’s get Loud” by Jennifer Lopez.

By selecting a majority of music from artists of color, Powell said, the music may work to highlight Harris’ identity as a Black and South Asian woman, while also courting Black women, a central voting bloc for Democrats.

It also featured more funk/soul, R&B and hip-hop music, genres largely developed by Black communities.

Bruce Springsteen’s “Born to Run” was Gov. Tim Walz’s walk-up song as Harris’ running mate, one of two rock songs included in the playlist. The other, “Don’t Stop Believin’” by Journey, was played at both campaign rallies.

The Harris playlist also featured the only nonbinary musician between the two campaigns, with “Tightrope” by Janelle Monáe.

Harris’ playlist swings more contemporary, with nine songs from the 2010s and 11 pop songs. Like the decades reflected in Trump’s campaign music, placing audiences in the present may reinforce the campaign slogan “We’re Not Going Back,” Powell said.

Both campaigns included a number of songs by LGBTQ+ artists. Harris’ campaign played several “queer anthems,” like Cher’s “Believe” or “I’m Coming Out” by Diana Ross.

While the Trump campaign’s playlist features four songs from queer musicians — Elton John, Queen and the Village People — Powell said he believes those musicians don’t court Trump’s base.

“Even though Trump is featuring queer artists, they go back to the nostalgic period,” he said. “Their sexuality wasn’t ‘upfront’ and very much explicit in the way that ‘Hot to Go’ [by queer musician Chappell Roan] or folks like Janelle Monáe are.”

The Harris campaign also played “Fast Car” by Tracy Chapman, a Black, queer musician. It was one of the only slow-tempo songs in the lineup. The song, recently covered by country music artist Luke Combs, is largely about poverty. Its use appeals to country and folk fans, Black and LGBTQ+ attendees, Powell said, aligning with the Harris campaign’s focus on inclusivity.

“It’s hitting on multiple kinds of demographics in a way that I think Trump’s use of queer folks isn’t doing that same kind of work,” he said.

Elton John, members of Queen and the Village People have all spoken against the use of their songs at Trump campaign events. Queen’s “We are the Champions” was played in St. Cloud, and MyPillow CEO Mike Lindell, a prominent election denier, walked out to Elton John’s “I’m Still Standing.”

In 2020, Village People frontman Victor Wills asked for “Y.M.C.A.” and “Macho Man” to be removed from Trump’s playlists, both of which were played in St. Cloud. In May 2023, he filed a cease-and-desist letter after Trump danced to “Macho Man” with supporters dressed as the Village People.

At least six other songs played at the St. Cloud rally were by artists who have called for Trump to stop using their music in previous election cycles, including Adele, the Rolling Stones, George Harrison, Phil Collins and Sam & Dave.

On August 6, French musician Yoann Lemoine, known as Woodkid, tweeted that he never gave permission for the use of “Run Boy Run” in a Trump campaign film, played at the St. Cloud rally.

“‘Run Boy Run’ is a LGBT+ anthem wrote by me, a proud LGBT+ musician. How ironic,” he wrote, and asked his record label, Universal Music France, to react.

What’s shared in both playlists are sing-alongs and opportunities to dance. At both rallies, attendees belted out well-known choruses and clapped along to classics.

“You want to sing these choruses sort of collectively,” Powell said. “And so it’s about community. It’s about oneness. It’s about a shared sense of things.”

Trump has long used “Y.M.C.A.” at rallies, and the St. Cloud audience almost entirely joined in the group choreography. In Eau Claire, the Harris campaign played “Hot To Go” by Chappell Roan, a 2023 song with similar group choreography, but was met with fewer dancing attendees.

“Wobble” by rapper V.I.C and “Cupid Shuffle” by Cupid were also played at the Harris rally. Line dances like these, Powell said, help to reinforce a group identity and create a sense of togetherness.

“This is less about sort of intentionality, and more so thinking about, what are the implications? What’s the impact of this music?”