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Just like real friends, who don’t care about “he says she says,”
According to The Los Angeles Times, Jack Antonoff recently spoke out in defense of Swift’s songwriting abilities.
Jack Antonoff, the musician-producer who has worked with Taylor Swift on multiple projects over the years. He vehemently refuted the claims that she doesn’t write her own songs and even compared questioning her skills to
“challenging someone’s faith in God”.
It’s clear that Jack Antonoff has a lot of respect for Swift and her talents, and it’s great to see him standing up for her in this way.
Talk your talk and go viral
The music industry has always been shot its shotgun of controversies and debates, and one such debate that came to the forefront recently involved Taylor Swift’s songwriting abilities.
The controversy began earlier this year when Damon Albarn, the lead singer of the band Gorillaz suggested that Swift didn’t truly write her own songs due to her co-writing process.
Regardless, Jack Antonoff, who has worked with Swift on 6 albums including; 1989, Reputation, Lover, Folklore, Evermore, Midnights, and 4 re-record albums of her previous albums including; Fearless (Taylor’s version), Red TV, Speak Now TV, 1989 TV and the upcoming 11th album; The Tortured Poets Department, swiftly responded to Albarn’s comments on Twitter, defending Swift and expressing his frustration.
Jack Antonoff vehemently refuted the claims that Swift doesn’t write her own songs and even compared questioning her skills to “like challenging someone’s faith in God. You just don’t go there”.
He also pointed out that he has never met Albarn nor ever been to his studio and that Albarn doesn’t know more than the rest of them about all the songs that Swift writes and brings in. He also quotes,
“If you were there … cool … go off. If not … maybe …. shut the f*** up?”.
After a while, Antonoff conceded,
“I’m a little b**ch sometimes. But you come after my friend Taylor, you’re toast to me.”
After Albarn’s words, Jack Antonoff came to Swift’s defense, but Swift also stood up for herself. In a tweet to Albarn, she expressed her disappointment, saying,
“I was such a big fan of yours until I saw this.”
She went on to call out Albarn’s statement
“Your hot take is completely false and SO damaging,” adding,
“I write ALL of my own songs.”, further stating,
“You don’t have to like my songs, but it’s really f***ed up to try and discredit my writing. WOW,”
Swift’s response on social media showed her strength and determination to stand up for herself and her work.
It’s clear that Jack Antonoff has a lot of respect for Swift and her talents, and it’s great to see him standing up for her in this way. Antonoff’s actions demonstrate the importance of standing up for what you believe in and supporting your friends in the face of adversity.
It was months and months of back and forth
Taylor Swift has consistently defended her songwriting abilities, pointing out her extensive songwriting credits, early songwriting beginnings, and the numerous awards she’s received for her songwriting, including Grammys for Album of the Year, Song of the Year, and Best Pop Vocal Album.
The music industry has always been a subject of scrutiny, and artists are no strangers to criticism. Swift has faced criticism throughout her career and is often scrutinized for her songwriting. Bloggers and critics have questioned the legitimacy of her songwriting abilities, often based on personal opinions or misinterpretations of the creative process.
Assuming the exact number of individuals with this opinion would involve delving into a vast number of online comments, blog posts, and personal opinions, which are constantly evolving and difficult to accurately track. Many criticisms lack specificity, often expressing doubt or skepticism without any concrete evidence. This vagueness makes it challenging to definitively sort them as accusations.
One of the reasons for this criticism could be the countless nature of the creative process. Songwriting is a collaborative effort, and many individuals are involved in bringing a song to life. Often, these opinions stem from misunderstandings about the collaborative nature of songwriting in the music industry. Individuals might not be aware of the different roles involved in creating a song, leading to inaccurate assumptions.
Regardless of these challenges, it is essential to recognize and respect everyone’s opinion, even if we do not agree with it. Criticism can be constructive and can help artists grow and improve their art. It is crucial to keep an open mind and continue to create and share our art with the world.
And speaking of criticism,
Bob Lefsetz, a music critic and blogger, commented on Swift, first ever in 2009 shortly after the release of her album Fearless.
He didn’t hold back when it came to his opinions about Taylor Swift. After her performance with Stevie Nicks at the 2010 Grammy Awards. He labeled her performance as “dreadful” and boldly declared, “Now, everyone knows Taylor Swift can’t sing.” His critique even went so far as to question whether Swift had prematurely ended her own career, relegating her to the “dustbin of teen phenoms.” Why you gotta be so mean?
Despite these harsh judgments, Swift has defied expectations and continued to thrive, showcasing her resilience and remarkable artistic growth by writing the entire Speak Now album all by herself.
Rumors circulated that Taylor Swift’s song Mean (2011) was a diss track directed at Lefsetz due to his critical comments, but the song’s lyrics don’t explicitly mention him, and Taylor Swift hasn’t confirmed or denied the inspiration behind the song.
Although facing accusations throughout her career regarding not writing her own songs, Swift has consistently proven herself as a talented songwriter.
While she has collaborated with other songwriters and producers on many of her hit songs, she has also written and co-written many of her own songs, as evidenced by her songwriting credits with music publishing organizations such as ASCAP and BMI.
Swift’s ability to both collaborate with others and write on her own speaks to her versatility and creativity as a musician.
Bad blood… Sort of
Previously, Jack Antonoff has expressed his disdain for Taylor Swift’s adversary Scooter Braun with a shady meme where in the cartoon, a woman sits at her computer, her baby engulfed in flames nearby in a sense of urgency, she quotes, “Not now sweetie, mommy is trying to figure out why Ariana Grande, Demi Lovato, and Idina Menzel just fired Scooter Braun as their manager.”
He also criticized Kanye West saying the rapper, “just needs his diaper changed so badly.”
Regarding concerns about criticizing a musician with whom he might collaborate in the future, Antonoff quotes,
“It’s been a long time since I would’ve taken Kanye’s call.”
“I’m so incredibly bored when someone doesn’t have the sauce anymore, so they go elsewhere to shock,” he said. “It’s just a remarkable waste of space.”
Mr. insincere apology so he doesn’t look like the bad guy
After this recent interview, fans of Swift (also known as Swifties) rallied behind her during the debate, and Damon Albarn ultimately apologized for his comments. He acknowledged that his words were reduced and accused the Times of publishing clickbait and expressed regret for discrediting Swift’s songwriting.
“I totally agree with you,” he said, responding to Swift.
“I had a conversation about songwriting and sadly it was reduced to clickbait. I apologize unreservedly and unconditionally. The last thing I would want to do is discredit your songwriting. I hope you understand.”
Albarn hoped that Swift would understand his genuine remorse over the matter.
A further announcement regarding The Tortured Poets Department
Despite the controversy, Jack Antonoff and Swift continue their collaborative partnership, with their latest project being her upcoming 11th album, The Tortured Poets Department, set to release on April 19, 2024. Swift revealed the album’s release during her acceptance speech for her 13th GRAMMY Award in January.
As Jack Antonoff remains silent during the interview about the upcoming album which Swifties are eagerly waiting for, Swift previews some easter eggs in her Instagram post which appeared to be lyrics from the songs of her upcoming album.
“And so I enter into evidence / My tarnished coat of arms / My muses, acquired like bruises / My talismans and charms / The tick, tick, tick of love bombs / My veins of pitch black ink,” a handwritten note read.
Swift shared the tracklist of her upcoming album, which includes 16 songs featuring Post Malone and Florence + the Machine, and added 3 more bonus tracks including, the bolter, the manuscript, and the albatross on her Instagram. At her recent concert in Tokyo, she revealed that she had been working on the album for two years.
She quotes, “I kept working on it throughout the U.S. tour and when it was perfect, in my opinion, when it was good enough for you, I finished it.”
“I am so, so excited that soon you’ll get to hear it, soon we’ll get to experience that together, and I’m just like, I’m over the moon about the fact that you guys care about my music,”
“It still blows my mind. I love doing this, I know I keep saying that, but that’s because it’s true.”
She also expressed her gratitude towards her fans for their support and love of her music.
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