What’s Going On With Taylor Swift and Damon Albarn?

I don’t know what it is about Taylor Swift that seems to bring out everyone’s most bizarre and projection-filled behavior, but once again, we find ourselves staring down the barrel of a Swift-related controversy. On Sunday, British musician Damon Albarn laid some pretty bold claims at her feet, and predictably, the situation had everyone—or, at least, everyone on Twitter—up in arms. Get all the details on the feud below:

What did Albarn actually say?

In a Los Angeles Times interview published on Sunday, Albarn accused Swift of not writing her own songs, saying, “I know what co-writing is. Co-writing is very different to writing. I’m not hating on anybody, I’m just saying there’s a big difference between a songwriter and a songwriter who co-writes.” Albarn then went on to compare Swift to fellow musician Billie Eilish. “A really interesting songwriter is Billie Eilish and her brother,” he remarked. “I’m more attracted to that than to Taylor Swift. It’s just darker—less endlessly upbeat. Way more minor and odd. I think she’s exceptional.”

What was Swift’s response?

Swift quickly replied to the quote from Albarn that was shared on Twitter, writing, “I was such a big fan of yours until I saw this. I write ALL of my own songs. Your hot take is completely false and SO damaging. You don’t have to like my songs but it’s really fucked up to try and discredit my writing. WOW.”

Did Albarn apologize?

Yes. In a tweet, Albarn replied: “I totally agree with you. i had a conversation about songwriting and sadly it was reduced to clickbait. I apologise unreservedly and unconditionally. The last thing I would want to do is discredit your songwriting. I hope you understand.”

Did Albarn’s apology seem genuine?

That’s really for Swift to decide, but it does seem kind of weird to trash one of the preeminent female songwriters out there and then try to blame it on “clickbait” (when, in fact, the Los Angeles Times appears to have printed a fairly direct transcript of what was said. Did they tweet out the most salacious part of the interview? Yes, but Albarn did still say it).

Why are people constantly coming for Taylor Swift?

I have literally no idea.

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