Canadian rocker Bryan Adams mocks Trump's lake renaming in new song

Canadian rock musician Bryan Adams has released a new song, Lake Ontario, that targets US President Donald Trump. In it, Adams accuses Trump of "breaking the peace" between people living along the shores of the lake, which straddles the US-Canada border. The song responds to a Trump order to rename the lake, in a dispute that has already strained relations between the two countries.

Background

In August, Trump signed an executive order directing US federal agencies to call Lake Ontario "Lake America". The move echoed his earlier, widely mocked decision to rename the Gulf of Mexico the "Gulf of America". It further escalated a feud with Canada that has strained the longstanding alliance between the two nations. In Canada the decision was largely met with derision, and some noted that the province of Ontario takes its name from the lake, not the other way around.

What the song says

Adams' lyrics stress the origin of the name: the "lake of shining waters" is what the Iroquois called it, a First Nations name rather than an executive order. The lyrics also suggest the renaming was meant to distract from other political problems for the president, including the war in Iran and renewed scrutiny of the Jeffrey Epstein files.

The album

In a recent interview, Adams described the song as part of a broader "love letter" to Canada. The project began with an invitation from a film company to write about Canada's Maritime provinces and grew into the upcoming album How's It Goin'. The album also includes 51st State, released on 1 July, Canada Day, as another rebuke of Trump, this time over his efforts to annex Canada.

Adams first played the song in public in the United States. He said he and his band were unsure how audiences would respond, but that it received a standing ovation every night, which made him think the tide might finally be turning.