Bryan Adams targets Trump over Lake Ontario in new protest song

Bryan Adams has released a new protest song criticising Donald Trump’s attempt to rename Lake Ontario, with lyrics that also refer to Iran and the Jeffrey Epstein files.

Editorial illustration of Lake Ontario with a guitar and a headline about Bryan Adams and Donald Trump's renaming order. — Images © Fish 4 News.

Released on 28 October 2026, Lake Ontario is taken from the Canadian singer’s forthcoming album How’s It Goin’, due on 6 November through BAD Records. Trump never gets a namecheck, but Adams does not exactly leave listeners guessing who he means.

Trump’s Lake America order: what actually changed

On 27 August, Trump signed Executive Order 14422 directing US federal authorities to use the name “Lake America” for Lake Ontario. The administration said the change recognised American investment, shipping and protection of the Great Lakes.

The order instructs the US Department of the Interior and Board on Geographic Names to amend federal records and maps. It does not require Canada to rename the lake, which borders Ontario and New York state, or bind other countries to US terminology.

A walkthrough of the song’s lyrics

Indigenous history comes first

Adams opens with the lake’s history, from glaciers and Indigenous stewardship to European settlement and industrialisation. His observation that the name is “not an executive order” sets up his objection to the White House decision.

There is a rather good history lesson tucked into those opening lines. Natural Resources Canada traces Ontario to an Iroquoian word associated with sparkling water. Ontario’s government has also recorded a Mohawk form meaning beautiful lake, while other sources use shining waters. The translations vary, but the important point is simple: the name was here long before either modern country.

Seneca Nation President J. Conrad Seneca called for the executive order to be rescinded, saying it disregarded Indigenous history. He also pointed to the 1794 Treaty of Canandaigua as part of his challenge to the decision.

Iran becomes the target of satire

The song then turns to Iran, and Adams brings out the toys-from-the-pram comparison. It is not especially subtle, nor is it meant to be. The joke is that a very public argument about the name of a lake makes a handy change of subject when the headlines elsewhere are uncomfortable.

Of course, none of us can read Trump’s mind. But Adams is far from alone in wondering about the timing. Political scientist Larry Sabato told USA Today that Trump’s distraction tactics often work, while Joe Rogan also described the lake row as a distraction from Iran. Whether or not that was the intention, it is a reading of events that plainly resonates beyond this song.

What the Epstein files reference means

Adams then brings up the Epstein files and calls the renaming row “another distraction”. You can see why the line lands: while questions about Epstein-related records continued, the White House was generating headlines about what to call a lake. Some people see that as a convenient diversion. Others may see it as part of Trump’s wider dispute with Canada. There is no obvious way to prove what was in his head, but the suspicion itself is hardly Adams’ invention.

For context, millions of pages of Epstein-related material have already been released. On 30 January 2026, the US Department of Justice put its total disclosures at nearly 3.5 million pages, alongside videos and images. The handling and completeness of those releases have nevertheless remained a subject of controversy.

The broader point about Canada

In its closing section, the song returns to the communities and history around the lake, and the idea that political disputes are temporary. Adams has framed the wider album as a love letter to Canada. Another track, 51st State, responds to Trump’s repeated suggestions that Canada become part of the United States.

More than a row over a map

The executive order is real, and so is the Indigenous history behind the lake’s name. The idea that the renaming was meant to draw attention away from Iran or Epstein is an interpretation, but it is one Adams shares with other critics, including some in the United States.

Underneath the jokes, Adams is making a straightforward point: politicians come and go, but a name with centuries of history does not disappear just because somebody signs a piece of paper. That is a much bigger story than an argument about what appears on an American map.

Sources

Watch Bryan Adams – Lake Ontario (official music video)

If the player is unavailable on your device, watch Bryan Adams’ official Lake Ontario video directly on YouTube.