White Stripes frontman Jack White said in a new interview that the confessional songwriting style popularized by Taylor Swift, where pop singers write about their publicly-aired breakups, is something he does not find "interesting at all."​

The 50-year-old rocker made the remarks in a Mar. 8 interview with The Guardian, published alongside his new book of lyrics and selected writings titled "Jack: Collected Lyrics & Writing Volume 1." When asked whether his songs are autobiographical, White replied that they are not particularly personal before referencing Swift by name.

"Now it's become very popular in the Taylor Swift way of pop singers writing about all of their publicly aired break-ups, which I don't find interesting at all," he said. "I think it's a little bit boring for me to write about myself," according to People.

White explained that he prefers channeling emotional experiences into fictional characters rather than presenting them directly. He added that even after having a particularly meaningful day, he does not feel compelled to relive that moment every time he performs a song onstage.​

The musician also noted that if something deeply painful happens to him, he would rather not expose it for public scrutiny online. Instead, he takes a fraction of that emotion and transforms it into a different character's story, PerthNow reported.

The comments drew widespread attention online, prompting White to post a clarification on Instagram on March 9. He stressed that he never called Swift's music "boring" and was instead describing his own preference for not writing about himself, which he personally finds uninteresting as a creative exercise.​

Swift, 36, is widely known for drawing from her past relationships in her music, with songs often linked to former partners like Joe Jonas, Jake Gyllenhaal, and Joe Alwyn. She is set to be inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame later this year and remains one of the best-selling artists of all time, as per Independent.

Tags
Jack White, Taylor Swift, Songs