Damon Albarn has been forced to issue a grovelling apology after awakening the wrath of Taylor Swift after he said he didn’t like her music.
The 53-year-old Blur legend was discussing music with the LA Times when he gushed over the songwriting skills of 20-year-old Billie Eilish and her brother Finneas, 24, who write her tracks together.
Damon praised Billie for her “darker” music – and compared it to the “endlessly upbeat” tunes that 32-year-old Taylor writes.
However, as Damon had also mentioned the word ‘co-writing’ in the breath before expressing his disinterest in Taylor’s music, the star leapt to the conclusion that he meant she didn’t write her own songs herself.
Damon’s comment clearly struck a deep nerve, with Taylor taking to Twitter to slam him for accusing her of not writing her own music.
She raged online: “@DamonAlbarn 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 f**ked up to try and discredit my writing. WOW.”
With the All Too Well singer’s tweet then igniting an avalanche of rage from her fanbase – the Swifters – it’s no surprise that Damon hastily took to Twitter himself to send a grovelling apology.
He wrote: “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.”
In his interview with the LA Times, Damon did not explicitly say he thought Taylor didn’t write her own music.
He said: “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.
“When I sing, I have to close my eyes and just be in there … a really interesting songwriter is Billie Eilish and her brother.
“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.”
While Billie and her brother are writing partners – with songs like Therefore I Am and Bad Guy rocketing up charts around the world – Taylor tends to work with a wide range of musicians.
Over the course of her 16-year career she has made tracks with Swedish hitmaker Max Martin – who wrote some of the biggest hits of Britney Spears, Katy Perry and Ariana Grande – songwriting powerhouse Ryan Tedder, and regularly collaborates with Fun. guitarist Jack Antonoff.
Back in 20014, the American star worked with British singer-songwriter Imogen Heap on a track called Clean which featured on her 1989 album.
In a blogpost on her own website, 44-year-old Imogen confessed she didn’t think Taylor wrote any of her songs herself and was subsequently blown away when the star arrived at her home to make a track with her.
The Grammy and Ivor Novello award winning star said all the work on the song was Taylors and that she made some suggestions and produced the track.
Imogen gushed: “I’ve also been reading the odd report or tweet here and there that the reason the lyrics to ‘Clean’ are so good is because I wrote the song with her but FOR SURE they are all hers she deserves all the credit!”
