Meg White | |
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Born | Megan Martha White December 10, 1974 Grosse Pointe Farms, Michigan, U.S. |
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Years active | 1997–2011 |
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Formerly of | The White Stripes |
Megan Martha White (born December 10, 1974) is an American retired musician who served as the drummer and occasional singer of the rock duo the White Stripes. She is credited as one of the key artists in the garage rock revival of the 2000s. She has won six Grammy Awards among other accolades, and was included on Rolling Stone 's 2016 list of the "100 Greatest Drummers of All Time".
White began playing the drums on Bastille Day in 1997, and formed the White Stripes with then-husband Jack White that same year. They enjoyed success within the Detroit music scene before achieving international fame with their breakthrough album White Blood Cells (2001). While on tour in support of their album Icky Thump (2007), she suffered a bout of acute anxiety, and the remaining dates of the tour were canceled. After a hiatus from performing and recording, the group disbanded in 2011 and White retired.
White is known for keeping a low public profile, calling herself "very shy" and reclusive. She and Jack portrayed themselves as siblings, however they were married from 1996 to 2000. From 2009 to 2013, she was married to guitarist Jackson Smith, the son of musicians Patti Smith and Fred "Sonic" Smith.
Megan Martha White was born in the affluent Detroit suburb of Grosse Pointe Farms, Michigan, [1] on December 10, 1974, the daughter of Catherine and Walter Hackett White Jr. [2] She has an older sister, Heather. [2] She attended Grosse Pointe North High School and, according to one classmate, was "always the quiet, obviously artistic type, and she just kept very much to herself". [2] While still in high school, she decided not to go to college and instead pursue a career as a chef. [2] [3] She worked at Memphis Smoke, a restaurant in downtown Royal Oak, where she first met budding musician Jack Gillis, a fellow high school senior from a Detroit neighborhood known as Mexicantown. [2] [3] They frequented the coffee shops, local music venues, and record stores of the area. [4]
According to the band, on Bastille Day (July 14) of 1997, Meg tried playing Jack's drumkit on a whim. [5] In Jack's words, "When she started to play drums with me, just on a lark, it felt liberating and refreshing. There was something in it that opened me up." [6] The two then formed the White Stripes and played their first gig at the Gold Dollar in Detroit. [7] [8] Their live performances were made of three basic elements: Jack did the guitar and vocal work, and Meg played drums. [6] Jack and Meg presented themselves as siblings to an unknowing public, [9] [10] and kept to a chromatic theme, dressing only in red, white, and black. [11] [12]
They began their career as part of Michigan's underground, garage rock music scene. [11] [3] [13] They played along with and opened for more established local bands such as Bantam Rooster, the Dirtbombs, Two Star Tabernacle, Rocket 455, and the Hentchmen, among others. [14] [3] In 1998, the band signed with Italy Records, a small and independent Detroit-based garage punk label of Dave Buick. [15] The band released its self-titled debut album in 1999, and a year later the album was followed up by the cult classic De Stijl . [16] Although they were divorced in 2000, [17] Meg insisted that they keep the band going. [18]
The White Stripes rose to widespread recognition in 2001 with the release of their album White Blood Cells , which brought them to the forefront of the garage rock revival and made them one of the most acclaimed bands the following year. [19] [3] [20] This success was propelled with the release of their 2003 album Elephant, which similarly earned acclaim and its first single, "Seven Nation Army", became the band's signature song and a sports anthem. [21] Several writers for AllMusic called Meg's drumming "hypnotic" and "explosively minimal", and Bram Teltelman of Billboard described it as "simple but effective". [22] [23] [24] Elephant won a Grammy Award for Best Alternative Music Album and "Seven Nation Army" won the Grammy Award for Best Rock Song. [25] Their later albums, 2005's Get Behind Me Satan and 2007's Icky Thump , each won acclaim and Grammy Awards for Best Alternative Music Album; the latter's title track also won the Grammy Award for Best Rock Song, totaling six Grammy Awards won out of ten nominations received throughout her career, [26] [27] [28] among other accolades. In 2004, she starred in the band's first music film Under Blackpool Lights , which was shot entirely on super 8 film. [29] [30]
Meg occasionally sang for the White Stripes, most notably performing lead vocals on "In the Cold, Cold Night" from Elephant and "Passive Manipulation" from Get Behind Me Satan. [31] Her vocals on "In The Cold, Cold Night" were particularly praised. Tom Breihan of Stereogum described her voice as "magnetic", [32] and Andrew Katchen with Billboard magazine wrote that she sounded "delicate and sweet". [33] Wanda Jackson later covered the track as a tribute. [34] [35] Rob Sheffield of Rolling Stone described her vocals in "Passive Manipulation" as "chilling", [36] while Matthew Murphy of Pitchfork thought that the song "begs the gentle suggestion that Meg not be allowed to sing lead." [37] Meg and Jack share vocal duties on the tracks "Hotel Yorba" and "This Protector" from White Blood Cells, "Well It's True That We Love One Another" on Elephant, "Rated X", [38] and "You Don't Know What Love Is (You Just Do as You're Told)" and "Rag and Bone" from Icky Thump, among other tracks. [39] [40]
In the summer of 2007, before a show in Southaven, Mississippi, Ben Blackwell (Jack's nephew and the group's archivist) says that Meg approached him and said, "This is the last White Stripes show". He asked if she meant of the tour, but she responded, "No. I think this is the last show, period." [41] [42] On September 11, 2007, the White Stripes announced via their website that they were canceling 18 tour dates due to Meg's acute anxiety. [43] [44] The following day, the duo canceled the remainder of their 2007 UK tour dates as well. [45] Jack worked with other artists in the meantime, but Meg remained largely out of the public eye, though in June 2008, she appeared briefly onstage during an encore set of a Detroit show with one of Jack's bands, the Raconteurs. [46] In an interview with Music Radar , Jack explained that Meg's acute anxiety had been due to the combination of a very short pre-tour rehearsal time—that was further reduced by the birth of his son—and a hectic, multi-continental touring schedule. [47] He said, "I just came from a Raconteurs tour and went right into that, so I was already full-speed. Meg had come from a dead-halt for a year and went right back into that madness." [47] In his review of Under Great White Northern Lights for Vanity Fair, Bill Bradley commented on the tour cancellations, saying that it was "impossible" not to see Meg as "road-weary and worn-out" at the end of the film. [48]
Jack revealed the band's plan to release a seventh album by the summer of 2009. [49] [50] On February 20, 2009—and on the final episode of Late Night with Conan O'Brien —the band made their first, and what would be their last, live appearance after the cancellation of their tours, performing the song "We're Going to Be Friends". [51] [52] [53] Meg appeared alongside Jack in the 2009 documentary film It Might Get Loud . [54] A documentary about their Canadian tour—titled The White Stripes: Under Great White Northern Lights —premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival on September 18, 2009. [55] [56] [57] Directed by Emmett Malloy, the film documents the band's summer 2007 tour across Canada and contains live concert and off-stage footage. [58] [59] A second feature titled Under Nova Scotian Lights was prepared for the DVD release. On February 2, 2011, the band reported on their official website that they were disbanding. The statement emphasized that it was not due to health issues or artistic differences, but "mostly to preserve what is beautiful and special about the band". [60] White has not been active in the industry since. [61]
White appeared on the cover of Whirlwind Heat's single "Pink", in a Detroit Cobras music video "Cha Cha Twist" as Little Red Riding Hood, and appeared with Jack White in a segment of Jim Jarmusch's 2003 film Coffee and Cigarettes . [62] She has done some modeling for Marc Jacobs' 2006 Spring line. [63] Two of her pictures appeared in the March 2006 issue of ELLE . She was chosen by Bob Odenkirk to compose a drum theme for Dax Shepard's character in the 2006 film Let's Go to Prison ; against Odenkirk's wishes however, the studio removed it from the film. [64] [65] The White Stripes guest starred on The Simpsons in an episode titled "Jazzy and the Pussycats", which first aired on September 17, 2006. [66] Meg had previously expressed interest in a Simpsons role in 2003, saying that "A guest appearance would be amazing. I wouldn't want to be in a Lisa episode. They're kind of boring. Maybe a Homer one would be better." [67] [68]
White suffers from acute anxiety, and has described herself as "very shy". [6] [43] [47] [69] [70] She told Rolling Stone in 2005 that "the more you talk, the less people listen". [71] She loves peppermint, and it inspired many of the White Stripes' artistic schemes. [72] [73] As of 2014, White resided in Detroit. [74]
White and Jack White dated in the mid-1990s, and were married on September 21, 1996, [75] with Jack taking her last name, and divorced on March 24, 2000. [17] In May 2009, she married guitarist Jackson Smith–the son of musicians Patti Smith and Fred "Sonic" Smith–in a small ceremony in Jack White's backyard in Nashville, Tennessee, and divorced in July 2013. [76] [77] [78]
White's musical influences are wide and varied, with Bob Dylan being her favorite artist. [79] Her pre-show warm up included "whiskey and Red Bull." [80] In reference to her "primal" approach to drumming, [14] she remarked, "That is my strength. A lot of drummers would feel weird about being that simplistic". She expanded by saying that "I appreciate other kinds of drummers who play differently, but it's not my style or what works for this band. I get [criticism] sometimes, and I go through periods where it really bothers me. But then I think about it, and I realize that this is what is really needed for this band. And I just try to have as much fun with it as possible". [80] On her style, Jack said "Meg is the best part of this band. It never would have worked with anybody else, because it would have been too complicated... It was my doorway to playing the blues." [6]
White began with a red Ludwig Classic Maple kit that had a red and white peppermint swirl on the resonant heads of the toms and bass drum. [81] [82] While recording From the Basement: The White Stripes, the design was switched to an image of her hand holding the apple from the Get Behind Me Satan cover.
White's Pearl Export bass drum—complete with original peppermint-painted bass drum that she used with the band's first show—and the Pearly Queen outfit she wore in the photos for the Icky Thump album, were featured in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame "Women Who Rock" exhibition. [83] On the Icky Thump tour, the bass drum head design was switched to a button inspired by the Pearlies clothing Jack and Meg wore for the album cover.
Beginning in 2006, White used a pair of Paiste 14" Signature Medium Hi-Hats, a 19" Signature Power Crash, and a 22" 2002 Ride. [81] [84] She also used Remo and Ludwig drumheads, various percussion instruments and Vater drumsticks. She later donated her Ludwig kit to the 2009 Jim Shaw Rock 'N' Roll Benefit, an auction to raise money for the Detroit musician who was suffering from cancer. [85] [86]
White is considered a key figure in the garage rock revival of the 2000s. While her simplistic drumming initially divided critics, she has earned several positive reviews for her "primal" style. [87] [88] Her strict maintenance of her privacy and giving few interviews has also been the subject of significant commentary. [89] [90] NPR dubbed her the "21st Century's Loudest Introvert". [18] White received several accolades with the White Stripes, which includes winning one Brit Award from six nominations [91] [92] [93] [94] [95] and winning six Grammy Awards from eleven nominations. [25] [26] [27] Rolling Stone included White on its 2016 list of the "100 Greatest Drummers of All Time" and wrote that her "idiosyncratic, primal take on drumming was fundamental to the appeal of the White Stripes, who rode their candy-colored outfits and stripped-down blues to rock stardom in the early Aughts." [96] They also wrote that her "art and sheer talent defined one of the most important bands of the 21st century". [97] NME included her on its 2018 list of "32 of the best drummers to grace rock 'n' roll." [98] She appeared on the Universal Music Group's 2022 list of "100 Best Drummers" and was deemed "rock music's most compelling stickswoman". [99] Clash titled her "One of Rock's Greatest Drummers" in 2023. [100]
Of a 2002 concert in Cleveland, Ohio, Chuck Klosterman said, "[Meg] never grimaced and didn't appear to sweat; yet somehow her drums sounded like a herd of Clydesdales falling out of the sky, one after another. Clearly this is a band at the apex of its power". [101] UK newspaper The Times said that she "reduced the art of drumming to its primary components, bashing the snare and cymbal together on alternating beats with the bass drum in a way that recalled Moe Tucker of the Velvet Underground." [13] An NPR article gave high praise, saying "On the drums, Meg White smashed out carnal, visceral, raw, sometimes funny and always urgent stories that told of the human experience." [18] Dave Grohl of Foo Fighters and previously Nirvana praised White's drumming, stating in an interview that she was "one of my favorite fucking drummers of all time. Like, nobody fucking plays the drums like that." [102] [103] Tom Morello of Rage Against the Machine wrote in an Instagram post that White "has style and swag and personality and oomph and taste and awesomeness that's off the charts and a vibe that's untouchable". [104] [105] [106] In contrast, Associated Press called her playing "maddeningly rudimentary", [107] and the satirical news site The Onion once featured the headline "Meg White Drum Solo Maintains Steady Beat For 23 Minutes". [108] In response to negative comments, Jack White stated Meg's drumming to be the "best part of this band", [6] and called her a "strong female presence in rock and roll". [109] He called her detractors "sexist". [6]
After writer Lachlan Markay called White's drumming a "tragedy" and "terrible" in response to a National Review article written about the 20 year anniversary of "Seven Nation Army" on Twitter, [110] [111] [112] [113] several musicians and critics came to her defense. [114] [115] [116] Hip-hop musician Questlove called the comments "out of line af. [...] what is wrong w music is people choking the life out of music like an Instagram filter—-trying to reach a high of music perfection that doesn't even serve the song (or music)". [117] [118] Singer Karen Elson, who was married to Jack White from 2005 to 2013, wrote that "Not only is Meg White a fantastic drummer, Jack also said the White Stripes would be nothing without her. To the journalist who dissed her, keep my ex husband's ex wife name out of your f*cking mouth." [119] [120] [121] Journalist Annie Zaleski wrote, "Onstage with the White Stripes, Meg White looked terminally nonchalant and chill while maintaining a steady backbeat and ensuring that the band's songs never got off track. Calling what she did simple undermines the whole approach of her technique and execution." [111] Jack White responded to the comments with a poem. [122] [123] [124] [97] Markay later apologized and deleted his comments. [125]
Year | Title | Role | Notes | Ref. |
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2003 | Coffee and Cigarettes | Herself | Anthology film | [62] |
2004 | Under Blackpool Lights | Direct-to-video film | [29] | |
2006 | The Simpsons | Episode: "Jazzy and the Pussycats" | [67] | |
2009 | It Might Get Loud | Documentary film | [54] | |
2010 | Under Great White Northern Lights | Rockumentary film | [48] |
The White Stripes were an American rock duo formed in Detroit, Michigan, in 1997. The group consisted of Jack White and Meg White. They were a leading group of the 2000s indie rock and garage rock revival.
Elephant is the fourth studio album by the American rock duo The White Stripes. It was released on April 1, 2003, through V2, XL, and Third Man records. The majority of the album was recorded across two weeks in April 2002 and produced without the use of computers, instead utilizing an eight-track tape machine and various gear no more recent than 1963.
De Stijl is the second studio album by the American rock duo the White Stripes, released on June 20, 2000, on Sympathy for the Record Industry. The album was recorded after the covert divorce of band members Jack and Meg White, who nevertheless continued working together. It was produced by Jack White, and was recorded on an 8-track analog tape in his living room.
John Anthony White is an American musician who served as the guitarist and lead singer of the rock duo the White Stripes. White is widely credited as one of the key artists in the garage rock revival of the 2000s. He has won 12 Grammy Awards, and three of his solo albums have reached number one on the Billboard 200. Rolling Stone ranked him number 32 on its 2023 list of greatest guitarists of all time. David Fricke's 2010 list ranked him at number 17. In 2012, The New York Times called White "the coolest, weirdest and savviest rockstar of our time".
Get Behind Me Satan is the fifth studio album by the American rock duo the White Stripes, released on June 7, 2005, on V2 Records. Though still basic in production style, the album marked a distinct change from its guitar-heavy 2003 predecessor, Elephant. With its reliance on piano-driven melodies and experimentation with marimba on "The Nurse" and "Forever For Her ", Get Behind Me Satan plays down the punk, garage rock and blues influences that dominated earlier White Stripes albums. Frontman Jack White plays with different technique than in the past, replacing electric guitar with piano, mandolin, and acoustic guitar on all but a handful of tracks, as his usual riff-conscious lead guitar style is overtaken by a predominantly rhythmic approach.
"Seven Nation Army" is a song by American rock duo the White Stripes. It is the opening track on their fourth studio album, Elephant (2003). V2 Records released the song to American alternative radio on February 17, 2003, as the lead single from the album. Worldwide, the single was issued through XL Recordings. Written and produced by Jack White, the song consists of distorted vocals, a simple drumbeat, and a bass line created by playing a guitar through a pitch shift effect.
"The Hardest Button to Button" is a song by American alternative rock band the White Stripes, released as the third single from their fourth studio album, Elephant (2003). Jack White said that the song is about a child trying to find his place in a dysfunctional family when a new baby comes. The cover of the single is an allusion to the graphics of Saul Bass, seen in the movie posters and title sequences of films such as Anatomy of a Murder and The Man with the Golden Arm. The cover also alludes to White's then-broken index finger and his obsession with the number three.
"Hotel Yorba" is the lead single from White Blood Cells, by American garage rock band the White Stripes, and their first single to be released commercially. It was released on November 12, 2001.
Paramore is an American rock band from Franklin, Tennessee, formed in 2004. Since 2017, the band consists of lead vocalist Hayley Williams, guitarist Taylor York and drummer Zac Farro. Williams and Farro are founding members of the group, while York, a high school friend of the original lineup, joined in 2007. Williams is the only member to appear on all six of Paramore's studio albums.
The American duo the White Stripes has released six studio albums, two live albums, four video albums, one extended play, 28 singles, and 20 music videos.
Icky Thump is the sixth and final studio album by American rock duo The White Stripes, released through Warner Bros. and Third Man Records in June 2007, with XL Recordings handling the United Kingdom release. Its first release came on June 15, 2007, in Germany, with the release for the rest of Europe occurring on June 18 and the rest of the world on June 19.
"Icky Thump" is a song recorded by the American alternative rock band the White Stripes. Written by Jack White, it was the first single released from their sixth and final album of the same name. The song is a heavy garage-rock piece whose lyrics challenge anti-immigration pundits for their hypocrisy. It was recorded and mixed at Nashville's Blackbird studio.
"Conquest" is a song written and first recorded by Corky Robbins and popularized in the 1950s by Patti Page. "Conquest" was also covered by The White Stripes on their 2007 album Icky Thump, which features Regulo Aldama on trumpet. Patti Page's version of "Conquest" was featured on an eBay commercial in the autumn of 2007. The song was used in multiple commercials in 2013 including the Ram trucks "Got Away" advert and also the Machete Kills trailer.
"Rag and Bone" is a song by the American garage rock band The White Stripes. It is the ninth track on their 2007 album Icky Thump. The track was released as a free red 7" vinyl with the June 6, 2007 issue of the NME magazine, with a unique Jack White-designed etching on the flipside of each record.
"You Don't Know What Love Is (You Just Do as You're Told)" is a song written and recorded by the American alternative rock band The White Stripes. The song was first played live on June 29, 2007, in Calgary, Alberta, Canada, and is the second track from their sixth studio album Icky Thump. The track was released as a CD single on September 18, 2007, with the 7" vinyl version of the single following on September 25. The music video for "You Don't Know What Love Is (You Just Do as You're Told)" premiered on MTV2 Unleashed, as well as MTV.com and MTV2.com on July 30, 2007.
Under Great White Northern Lights is a 2009 documentary film about the White Stripes' summer 2007 tour across Canada directed by Emmett Malloy. It contains live concert and off-stage footage. The film's accompanying album is a collection of various recordings from throughout the tour. The documentary was released on DVD and Blu-ray, and the album was released on CD as well as 180-gram vinyl LP. A special edition box set was also available. The CD, LP, DVD, BD, and box set were all released on March 16, 2010 in Canada, with other dates worldwide.
Blunderbuss is the debut solo studio album by American musician Jack White. It was released in digital and physical formats beginning April 23, 2012, through Third Man Records, in association with XL Recordings and Columbia Records. Written almost entirely by White, the album was recorded and produced by him at Third Man Studio in Nashville, Tennessee. Various musical styles appear throughout, including blues rock, folk, and country soul.
Jack Michael Antonoff is an American singer, musician, songwriter, and record producer. Antonoff is the lead singer of rock band Bleachers, and was the guitarist and drummer in the pop rock band Fun. He was previously the lead singer of the indie rock band Steel Train. Aside from his work with Bleachers and Fun, Antonoff has worked as a songwriter and record producer with various artists, including Taylor Swift, The 1975, Lorde, St. Vincent, Florence and the Machine, Lana Del Rey, Fifth Harmony, Kevin Abstract, Carly Rae Jepsen, The Chicks, Tegan and Sara, and Clairo. Antonoff has often been credited with having a significant impact on the sound of contemporary popular music since the mid-2010s.
White Blood Cells is the third studio album by American rock duo the White Stripes, released on July 3, 2001. The album was recorded in less than one week at Easley-McCain Recording in Memphis, Tennessee, and was produced by frontman and guitarist Jack White. It was the band's final record released independently on Sympathy for the Record Industry. The album explores themes of love, hope, betrayal, and paranoia, which were inspired by the increased media attention the group were receiving.