Jack White held little back during a four-minute diatribe at his show at Fenway Park in Boston on Wednesday, taking a shot at fellow rock heavyweights Foo Fighters and bringing the hammer down on Rolling Stone.
Opening up, White shared his distaste for those who have defiled the sanctity of the live performance, stating how "most performers don't use microphones anymore, you know ... singers don't use microphones that have cords." Next up was Foo Fighters. White commented how the band uses a second guitarist "playing the same parts" so as to cover up any mistakes that might be made while performing.
Last on his list was Rolling Stone, and White had plenty of say about the magazine's online content, announcing that it was “brought to you by the Kardashian family.” He made up a number of listicle-based faux articles, like "15 Outfits That Will Blow Your Mind That Taylor Swift Wore This Month" and "12 Reasons Rolling Stone Won’t Put A Black And White Cover On The Cover Of Their Magazine Unless You're Dead." White was also sure to mention that one of the co-founders and editor of Rolling Stone, Jann Wenner, is also the current owner of US Weekly.
“OK, I’m officially supposed to stop now, because this is becoming a Kanye West-esque rant," White said in conclusion. "Because apparently, nowadays, you aren’t allowed to speak to your own fans about anything, lest it be a rant.” He concluded, “So forget ISIS, forget the war in the Middle East, forget any problems at home, forget gay marriage, forget everything you ever thought about everything. This not a rant. This is just me saying, HELLO CLEVELAND!”
Listen to White's fury below.
[h/t Pitchfork]
UPDATE -- 4:54 pm: Jack White's camp released a statement addressing his remakrs about Foo Fighters during his performance in Boston, assuring everyone that there is no conflict between White and Dave Grohl and company, saying that "Jack has the upmost respect for the Foo Fighters and communicated with Grohl this morning." Read the full statement:
Foo Fighters also responded to the situation, tweeting out a picture of an adorable monkey holding a guitar, saying “Busted….behold, the secret of the Foo Fighters sound….”
Opening up, White shared his distaste for those who have defiled the sanctity of the live performance, stating how "most performers don't use microphones anymore, you know ... singers don't use microphones that have cords." Next up was Foo Fighters. White commented how the band uses a second guitarist "playing the same parts" so as to cover up any mistakes that might be made while performing.
Last on his list was Rolling Stone, and White had plenty of say about the magazine's online content, announcing that it was “brought to you by the Kardashian family.” He made up a number of listicle-based faux articles, like "15 Outfits That Will Blow Your Mind That Taylor Swift Wore This Month" and "12 Reasons Rolling Stone Won’t Put A Black And White Cover On The Cover Of Their Magazine Unless You're Dead." White was also sure to mention that one of the co-founders and editor of Rolling Stone, Jann Wenner, is also the current owner of US Weekly.
“OK, I’m officially supposed to stop now, because this is becoming a Kanye West-esque rant," White said in conclusion. "Because apparently, nowadays, you aren’t allowed to speak to your own fans about anything, lest it be a rant.” He concluded, “So forget ISIS, forget the war in the Middle East, forget any problems at home, forget gay marriage, forget everything you ever thought about everything. This not a rant. This is just me saying, HELLO CLEVELAND!”
Listen to White's fury below.
[h/t Pitchfork]
UPDATE -- 4:54 pm: Jack White's camp released a statement addressing his remakrs about Foo Fighters during his performance in Boston, assuring everyone that there is no conflict between White and Dave Grohl and company, saying that "Jack has the upmost respect for the Foo Fighters and communicated with Grohl this morning." Read the full statement:
Dear dream-makers of the media….
Last night Jack White made a joke on stage!
There was a minor equipment mishap, specifically with his guitar, and in an effort to keep his audience engaged, he made a joke! It was meant to be funny and self deprecating: “hey sorry, you’re stuck with just me up here...” vs the Foo Fighters who have three guitar players on stage and regularly play stadium shows.
Jack has the upmost respect for the Foo Fighters and communicated with Grohl this morning.
So if you’ll let us, we’ll all continue with our day and we assure you: All is well in the rock n roll world.
Foo Fighters also responded to the situation, tweeting out a picture of an adorable monkey holding a guitar, saying “Busted….behold, the secret of the Foo Fighters sound….”
Busted....behold, the secret of the Foo Fighters sound.... pic.twitter.com/xbUUTwuyAt
— Foo Fighters (@foofighters) September 18, 2014