Jack White slams NME for ‘tabloid drama’ following Lady Gaga misquote
Jack White has denied recent reports that he hates Lady Gaga’s music, explaining that he merely questions the singer’s presentation. White dismissed the “tabloid drama” over his recent comments in Esquire, saying he applauds Gaga’s advocacy of gay rights.
Earlier this week, Esquire published excerpts of an interview with White, due to appear in its January issue. “I don’t think [Lady Gaga] lives it because it’s all artifice,” he said. “It’s all image with no meaning behind it. You can’t sink your teeth into it. It’s a soundbite. It’s very of this age, because that’s what people want.” The story was picked up by NME, under the headline “Jack White: ‘Lady Gaga’s music is all image with no meaning behind it.'”
“I don’t like my comments about Lady Gaga’s presentation being changed into some sort of negative critique of her music,” White said on Wednesday. “I never said anything about her music, or questioned the authenticity of her songs in any way. I was in a conversation about the drawbacks of image for the sake of image, and that it is popular nowadays to not question an image in front of you … If you’re going to try to cause drama, at least get the quotes right.”
In a note on the Third Man Records website, White criticised NME for suggesting he had insulted Gaga’s music. “Publications like the NME … put whatever words they feel like between two quotation marks and play it off as a quote,” he said. “Maybe somebody with more lawyers can take them to task … That kind of tabloid drama encourages artists to not express their opinions in the press, and instead give polite soundbites that don’t stimulate thought about creativity and the consumption of art in its many guises.”
White closed by wishing “peace to Lady Gaga”.
“I fully congratulate and compliment her on her championing of gay rights issues and the momentum it’s given to help create change,” he said. He stopped short of inviting the pop star to record a session at his Third Man studios.
Source: The Guardian
