Simply put, it’s quite hard to not know who Taylor Swift is these days. The country teen star has crossed over to the pop world and taken over the music world while adding fans and haters along the way.
Today (Aug. 12), she revealed through her Instagram while appearing on the Kelce brothers New Heights podcast that her 12th studio album will be titled The Life of a Showgirl, so the whole world is talking about her right now even more than they usually do.
Swift’s fanbase, affectionately known as “Swifties,” is made up of some of the most loyal (and scary) Stans in music history. One negative comment on the internet about the artist, and you’re sure to summon swarms of them.
But it’s not just Swifties who defend the entertainer — rock musicians do it, too.
Some of those defenses came a few years ago after the rock singer Damon Albarn tried to take Swift down a peg by downplaying her songwriting contributions in an interview. (“She doesn’t write her own songs,” he flatly told the Los Angeles Times in January of 2022. Several rock musicians jumped up to correct him.)
But that’s not the only time. Disturbed’s David Draiman pushed back against a negative response from a crowd member at a show by sharing his praise for Swift and notoriously critical Oasis vocalist Liam Gallagher has also shown his support for the pop star as well.
Plenty of other performers in rock music have gushed about Swift on occasions unrelated to that beef.
Scroll down below to see how these rock musicians defended Swift. Their reasons run the gamut. Would you go to bat for Swift?
20 Rock Musicians Who Have Defended Taylor Swift
These rockers all had nice things to say about the pop star.
Gallery Credit: Loudwire Staff
Liam Gallagher
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Liam Gallagher
Former Oasis singer Liam Gallagher defended Taylor Swift in early 2022 after the pop star condemned the bandleader of Blur and Gorillaz, Damon Albarn, because Albarn said Swift didn’t write her own songs.
“I think [Taylor’s] fucking cool, man,” Gallagher said to NME. “She does write her songs.”
He added, “All them fucking gorilla albums are co-writes aren’t they? I get it — [my brother] Noel bangs on about it as well: ‘I’m more important than you because I write my fucking songs.'”
Aaron Dessner
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Aaron Dessner
Aaron Dessner, a guitarist in the indie-rockers The National, also came to Swift’s defense after the Albarn dustup. That makes sense, because the rock musician has worked as a producer with Swift.
“As someone who has gotten to press record around her, your statements couldn’t be further from the truth,” Dessner tweeted at Albarn in January 2022. “You’re obviously completely clueless as to her actual writing.”
Ringo Starr
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Ringo Starr
Former Beatle Ringo Starr got real about the state of rock music in 2021 when he praised Swift to Esquire.
“There’s a lot of good bands out there, but nobody’s doing anything,” the drummer said. “A lot of people are on that stepping stone to a bigger career, it’s got to be a downer for them. It’s really tough. Taylor Swift is the only one who’s doing well. She likes to play by herself. I love her.”
Paul McCartney
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Paul McCartney
It tracks that Paul McCartney, another ex-Beatle, is tight with Swift. After all, the two musicians jointly graced the cover of Rolling Stone in 2020 as part of a collaborative interview with the music magazine.
After the fact, Macca explained how nice Swift was to him regarding release dates. The two artists’ planned album releases had bumped up against each other.
“I did the Rolling Stone cover with Taylor Swift, and she just emailed me recently, and she said, ‘I wasn’t telling anyone, but I’ve got another album,'” McCartney told Howard Stern. “And she said, ‘So I was going to put it out on my birthday.'”
He added, “And then she said, ‘But I found out you were going to put [yours] out on the 10th. So I moved it to the 18th.’ And then she found out we were coming out on the 18th so she moved back to the 10th.”
McCartney concluded, “It’s a nice thing to do.”
Patti Smith
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Patti Smith
Legendary rock singer Patti Smith defended Swift concerning the public pressure Swift faces as a musician and a celebrity. She also vouched for the influence Swift has over her fans.
“She’s a pop star who’s under tremendous scrutiny all the time, and one can’t imagine what that’s like,” Smith told The New York Times in 2019. “It’s unbelievable to not be able to go anywhere, do anything, have messy hair. And I’m sure that she’s trying to do something good. She’s not trying to do something bad. And if it influences some of her avid fans to open up their thoughts, what does it matter?”
She added, “Are we going to start measuring who’s more authentic than who?”
Brendon Urie
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Brendon Urie
Other defenses of Swift cropped up in 2019 after music mogul Scooter Braun acquired Swift’s past master recordings against her wishes. (It’s why Swift has now taken to entirely re-recording her back catalog.) That year, Panic! at the Disco singer Brendon Urie backed Swift in the situation.
“It just like broke my heart,” the Panic! frontman said via his official channel on Twitch, as transcribed by Variety. “I read Taylor’s statement and I was like, ‘That sounds about right,’ you know. Toxic dudes doing toxic bullshit in this toxic industry … He doesn’t sound like a very good person. It’s a shit show to learn how awful people can be just for a profit, just for a monetary gain and maybe some clout.”
HAIM
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HAIM
The rock trio HAIM, who are friends with Swift, also defended her in the Braun debacle. At the time, according to ET, they posted a statement of support on social media, saying, “Read this. We support you @TaylorSwift. This is the dark sh*t in our industry that no one sees.”
The band’s lead vocalist, Danielle Haim, added in a personal Instagram Story, “Sometimes I’m reminded how fucked up and slimy this business is. this is one of those times – LET @taylorswift BUY BACK HER MUSIC YOU FUCKING ASSHOLES !!” (via Elle)
Dave Grohl
YouTube: The Late Late Show with James Corden
Dave Grohl
We can only imagine what happens at big parties with a bunch of rock stars. But apparently, when Paul McCartney gets together with Foo Fighters bandleader Dave Grohl, the pair play songs together.
One time, Swift was with them, and she even helped Grohl out when it was his turn to play a tune.
That’s what the Foo dude recalled on The Late Late Show with James Corden in 2018.
Grohl would later end up in the crosshairs of Swifties after making a dad joke about being on the “Errors Tour” in 2024 during a show but then later suggesting that they play live music. Swift addressed the perceived slight a few nights later telling a London crowd, “My band who’s gonna be playing live for you for three and a half hours tonight, they deserve this so much.”
But for this instance, we’re gonna share the supportive moment below.
Bruce Springsteen
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Bruce Springsteen
In a 2017 Variety feature, Bruce Springsteen recalled, “When my daughter was in college she took me with all of her girlfriends [to a Taylor Swift concert] and it was a fantastic show.”
The classic rocker known as “The Boss” added that Swift’s audience “experiences her songwriting very, very personally, and I think she’s speaking to a large part of them very personally. As far as craft, [her songs are] really, really well-built and well-made; they’re very, very sturdy, and the records are too.”
Eddie Vedder of Pearl Jam
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Eddie Vedder
Pearl Jam’s Eddie Vedder caught a show on Swift’s Eras Tour in 2024 when he attended with his wife Jill and daughters Olivia and Harper.
According to People, Vedder’s appreciation for Swift grew once he saw how she treated her fans, including his own daughters.
“She’s an artist who’s respectful of her audience and I know from my daughter that she’s really kind of incredible at planting these little … hidden codes that they can pick up,” Vedder said during a 2024 episode of Bill Simmons’ podcast. “And then all of a sudden, it activates all those. people that are listening, and has them involved in it.”
Months later, he would find himself joined on stage by daughter Harper to cover Swift’s “The Best Day” during the 2024 Ohana Fest.
I Prevail
Steve Thrasher
I Prevail
The metalcore band I Prevail vouched for Swift just by covering her hit “Blank Space” in 2014. It put the Michigan-based band on the map, and the version eventually went platinum.
“We put the cover out, and oh my Lord, it was the biggest afterthought,” I Prevail singer Brian Burkheiser told the Chicago Tribune in 2016. “Billboard, on the second day it came out, posted an article about it. I’ll never forget it because I was … taking a pizza out of the oven with one hand, and reading this article with the other. I started freaking out, like, ‘Oh my God, this might actually turn into a thing.'”
David Draiman
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David Draiman
David Draiman has jumped to Swift’s defense a couple of times, with a recent instance occurring during one of Disturbed’s January 2024 concerts. The singer invited two dads and their daughters up onstage and praised them for being at a rock show as opposed to a Swift concert, but added, “Don’t forget: Taylor Swift still kicks ass” [via NME].
He’s also said he’d love to cover one of her songs, or even collaborate with her.
“I think that she is one of the most prolific songwriters of our generation,” he told WWMR. “I think she’s insanely talented. I’d love to collaborate with Taylor, if she ever wanted to on any given day.”
Steven Wilson
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Steven Wilson
Porcupine Tree frontman Steven Wilson has spoken highly of Taylor Swift several times, and chose her album Folklore as one of his favorite records in an Instagram video. He even covered one of the tracks, “The Last Great American Dynasty.”
Stevie Nicks, Fleetwood Mac
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Stevie Nicks
Stevie Nicks has performed live with Taylor Swift, and thanked the pop star for the song “You’re on Your Own, Kid” from her 2022 album Midnights, which Nicks said helped her grieve her Fleetwood Mac bandmate Christine McVie.
She also wrote a tribute to Swift in 2010 for Time Magazine.
“Taylor reminds me of myself in her determination and her childlike nature. It’s an innocence that’s so special and so rare. This girl writes the songs that make the whole world sing, like Neil Diamond or Elton John. She sings, she writes, she performs, she plays great guitar. Taylor can do ballads that could be considered pop or rock and then switch back into country,” Nicks wrote.
Most recently, Nicks penned a poem for Swift’s April 2024 album The Tortured Poets Department
Chris Motionless
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Chris Motionless
Motionless in White vocalist Chris Motionless is a self-professed Swiftie, also calling Folklore his favorite album of hers.
“She’s a phenomenal writer, she writes most of the stuff either herself or is very, very heavily involved with it,” he told Revolver during a podcast interview.
“She’s so, so, so smart in every facet of her musical… Tell me I’m wrong, everything she does is genius.”
Paul Stanley
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Paul Stanley
KISS legend Paul Stanley attended a Swift concert in August of 2023 with his family, and had nothing but good things to say about her performance.
“[Six] shows at SoFi Stadium for a total of A HALF MILLION PEOPLE and I know why,” he wrote in a tweet. “PHENOMENAL SHOW BY A PHENOMENAL ARTIST. Thanks to her staff for rolling out the red carpet for us.”
billy corgan
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Billy Corgan
In 2024, not long after Taylor Swift released the epic The Tortured Poets Department, Smashing Pumpkins leader Billy Corgan came to her defense after seeing criticisms over the length of the record.
Speaking with The Irish Times, Corgan was talking about Sinead O’Connor’s musical legacy when he shifted his focus to Taylor Swift while making a point.
Corgan reasoned that he would love to have found that O’Connor had a lost tape of material and feeling that fans would embrace anywhere from 20 to 50 songs. He then mentioned Swift, “Taylor Swift is one of the most gifted pop artists of all time. How is it a bad thing that she’s releasing more music? I can’t follow that … You can go on Spotify and just skip it.”
gary holt of exodus and slayer
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Gary Holt
You might consider Slayer and Exodus on the polar opposite end of the spectrum from Taylor Swift, but guitarist Gary Holt who has played with both bands has shared his appreciation for Swift.
During a 2024 appearance on the Scandalous podcast, he commented, “I love Taylor Swift! Why all the hate? She’s an extraordinarily hard worker, she’s super fucking nice to everybody, and people hate her. She’s just the biggest pop star on Earth, and more power to her. I like the songs!”
The guitarist also made note later on in the chat, “[Taylor is also] a good person on top of anything else Not that I know her, but hey, she tipped off her truck drivers 100 grand.”
I’m not a Swiftie, but when ‘I Knew You Were Trouble’ comes on the radio, I don’t change it,” confessed the metal guitarist.
kid rock in 2025
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Kid Rock
You may not have seen this one coming, but Kid Rock, who has been on the polar opposite side of Taylor Swift politically, shared some words of praise for Swift leading up to the 2024 presidential election.
In a video in which Rock was seen playing guitar from his porch, the “Bawitdaba” singer shared a message to fans about left-leaning musicians such as Taylor Swift and Eminem.
“Now that I have your attention, I love Eminem. We’ve been friends for many years. I don’t agree with his politics, but I do give credit to him and people like Taylor Swift for standing up and not being afraid to be vocal for that in which they believe. Thinking differently and having the freedom to do so is what makes this country great,” he shared via the X social media platform.
Jeff Ament
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Jeff Ament
Jeff Ament of Pearl Jam admires Swift’s ability to seamlessly change her style and still succeed as a pop artist.
“She’s not afraid to change and change in a way that maybe is kind of anti-pop in some ways, you know, which is… I have huge props for that,” Amnet said during a 2024 episode of Bill Simmons’ podcast.
Ament believes Swift deserves more credit for reaching the level she has as an artist.
“She’s in a place that maybe two or three other artists or musical people have ever been in,” he said during the episode. “I mean, it’s nuts.”
25 Rock + Metal Bands Whose Singer Is the Only Original Member Left
The following bands no longer have any original members left except the lead singer.
Gallery Credit: Philip Trapp
Aborted
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Aborted (Sven de Caluwe)
Aborted vocalist Sven de Caluwe, the Belgian death metal act’s sole constant member, has employed a half-dozen versions of the band’s lineup since 1995. (The group’s former members include over 20 musicians.) Today, drummer Ken Bedene is the second-longest serving member — he joined in 2010.
Black Veil Brides
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Black Veil Brides (Andy Biersack)
Lead vocalist Andy Biersack is the only member left from Black Veil Brides’ original lineup. The glammy metalcore outfit formed in 2006, and longtime rhythm guitarist Jinxx joined in 2009. Drummer Christian “CC” Coma and lead guitarist Jake Pitts followed shortly after. They remain today alongside bassist Lonny Eagleton.
Bush
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Bush (Gavin Rossdale)
Founding drummer Robin Goodridge returned when Bush reunited in 2010. But since his departure nine years later, singer-guitarist Gavin Rossdale is the lone remaining original member of the English rock band. Pictured above is the classic Bush lineup with lead guitarist Nigel Pulsford (far left) and bassist Dave Parsons (far right) in 2001.
Danzig
Gary Miller, Getty Images
Danzig (Glenn Danzig)
The first lineup of Danzig included guitarist John Christ, bassist Eerie Von and drummer Chuck Biscuits. They backed the metal band’s namesake, lead singer Glenn Danzig (Misfits, Samhain). But Glenn is the only remaining original Danzig member since Biscuits left in 1994, and Christ and Von followed him out a year later.
Eels
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Eels (E)
Singer Mark Oliver Everett, otherwise known as E, debuted his Los Angeles alt-rockers Eels with Jonathan “Butch” Norton on drums and Tommy Walter on bass. Walter left in 1997 to form Abandoned Pools; Butch departed in the mid-2000s. The group has had several lineup changes since, with Everett the only constant.
Dying Fetus
Relapse Records
Dying Fetus (John Gallagher)
Dying Fetus guitarist-vocalist John Gallagher has helmed the Maryland-born death metal band from their 1991 start. The group’s rhythm section currently consists of bassist Sean Beasley and drummer Trey Williams, who joined in 2001 and 2007, respectively. (Pictured, L-R: Williams, Beasley, Gallagher)
Everclear
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Everclear (Art Alexakis)
Alternative rock fans from the ’90s and early 2000s likely remember Everclear’s classic trio of singer-guitarist Art Alexakis with bassist Craig Montoya and drummer Greg Eklund. But after the rhythm section parted ways with Alexakis in 2003, the bandleader became the only original member left.
FEAR
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FEAR (Lee Ving)
The punk icons FEAR have always had their leader in lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist Lee Ving. Today, he’s the band’s only original member. However, early lead guitarist Philo Cramer did return to the group in 2018. Cramer supplanted founding guitarist Burt Good only a year after FEAR formed in Los Angeles in 1977.
Fever 333
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FEVER 333 (Jason Aalon Butler)
Former Letlive vocalist Jason Aalon Butler established the post-hardcore rap-rock outfit FEVER 333 in 2017 with guitarist Stephen Harrison and drummer Aric Improta. In 2022, Harrison and Improta left the trio, leaving Butler the only original band member. (Pictured, L-R: Harrison, Butler, Improta)
Hate Eternal
Season of Mist
Hate Eternal (Erik Rutan)
Guitarist and lead vocalist Erik Rutan runs the show for Florida’s Hate Eternal, who formed in 1997. A rotating lineup of musicians has accompanied him in the death metal band since original drummer Tim Yeung left in 2000. The late Jared Anderson, the band’s first bassist and a former Morbid Angel member, parted ways with the group in 2003. Rutan is also now lead guitarist in Cannibal Corpse.
Jethro Tull
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Jethro Tull (Ian Anderson)
Jethro Tull mastermind Ian Anderson is the only original Tull-er these days. All other current members of the influential classic rock act joined in 2007 or later. The original lineup was formed in England in 1967.
Machine Head
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Machine Head (Robb Flynn)
Lead vocalist and guitarist Robb Flynn formed the groove-metalheads Machine Head in 1991 with guitarist Logan Mader, bassist Adam Duce and drummer Chris Kontos. But since 2013, Flynn has been the only original member of that lineup left. However, Mader and Kontos briefly returned to touring with the band in 2019 to celebrate the 25th anniversary of their first album, Burn My Eyes.
Megadeth
Travis Shinn
Megadeth (Dave Mustaine)
Through all their lineup shifts since 1983, Megadeth stayed centered on the duo of singer-guitarist Dave Mustaine and bassist David Ellefson. (Well, mostly — Ellefson’s 2004–2010 leave excluded.) But as of 2021, Mustaine remains the only original member of the metal titans. Ellefson parted ways with the band in May of that year.
Ministry
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Ministry (Al Jourgensen)
Al Jourgensen is the primary creative force in industrial metal icons Ministry. It’s been that way since the lead vocalist started the band as a synth-driven new wave act in 1981. But the group’s formative lineups fizzled by 1986, just before Ministry took off in the world of metal.
Pedro the Lion
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Pedro the Lion (David Bazan)
Pedro the Lion have always been about the dark indie rock created by singer-songwriter and founding member David Bazan. Since reforming the band in 2017, two new recruits in Erik Walters (guitar) and Sean Lane (drums) have rounded out the group as a trio, with Bazan on bass.
Queens of the Stone Age
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Queens of the Stone Age (Josh Homme)
Singer-guitarist Josh Homme is Queens of the Stone Age’s only remaining original member after first bassist Nick Oliveri split in 2004. Early drummer Alfredo Hernandez left in 1999. Alas, the band has always been a vehicle for Homme’s songs – they were founded with that aim in 1996 before he even recruited band members.
Soul Asylum
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Soul Asylum (Dave Pirner)
Lead vocalist and guitarist Dave Pirner is the sole remaining original member of Soul Asylum. Original bassist Karl Mueller died in 2005. Founding lead guitarist Dan Murphy left the longtime Minneapolis rock band in 2012.
Starflyer 59
Tooth & Nail Records
Starflyer 59 (Jason Martin)
Starflyer 59 started as a heavy shoegaze band when the duo of singer-songwriter Jason Martin and bassist Andrew Larson first came together in Southern California in the early ’90s. Three decades later, the outfit’s proven more as an alt-rock solo vehicle for Martin. (Larson was out by 1997.) Former Starflyer 59 members have included drummer Frank Lenz, guitarist Josh Dooley, and the late keyboardist Richard Swift (The Black Keys, The Shins).
The Beach Boys
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The Beach Boys (Mike Love)
The classic Beach Boys lineup, including original members Brian Wilson and Al Jardine, toured together again amid a brief reunion of the group’s surviving members in 2012. But since then, seeing The Beach Boys live means seeing only original vocalist Mike Love onstage with the band. (Longtime but non-original sideman Bruce Johnston is also there.) This was also the case before the reunion. There is a caveat — Wilson and Jardine are still official “members,” though only one original Beach Boy currently performs onstage with the act.
The Cure
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The Cure (Robert Smith)
Robert Smith, the iconic lead singer in new wave favorites The Cure, is the band’s only remaining original member. However, bassist Simon Gallup is almost an original member — he supplanted founding bassist Michael Dempsey just a year after the group formed in England in 1978.
The Shins
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The Shins (James Mercer)
Besides singer-guitarist James Mercer, the longest-serving member of The Shins is bassist Yuuki Matthews, who joined in 2011. But Mercer started the indie-rock band in 1996 with drummer Jesse Sandoval. Bassist Dave Hernandez and keyboardist Martin Crandall joined in 1998. All three parted ways with the group in 2009.
Vader
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Vader (Piotr ‘Peter’ Wiwczarek)
The Polish death metal band Vader were formed by Piotr “Peter” Wiwczarek in 1983. The group has been through several lineup changes, resulting in all other current members having joined in the 2010s or later.
Venom
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Venom (Conrad ‘Cronos’ Lant)
English metal pioneers Venom cemented their ambition around lead vocalist and bassist Conrad “Cronos” Lant in 1979, after he joined the band that was previously called Guillotine. As Venom, Lant has steered the ship creatively for four decades. Today, he remains the only original member of the proto-black metal mainstays.
W.A.S.P.
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W.A.S.P. (Blackie Lawless)
Blackie Lawless is the sole original member in the classic metal act W.A.S.P. The singer formed the band in 1982 with members of his previous outfit, Circus Circus. All other current members joined in the ’90s or after. Pictured (L-R) are original guitarist Randy Piper, Lawless, guitarist Chris Holmes and original drummer Tony Richards in 1985.
Whitesnake
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Whitesnake (David Coverdale)
It tracks that lead vocalist David Coverdale is the only original member left in Whitesnake. After all, the band was formed solely as a vehicle for his singing after he left Deep Purple in the mid-’70s. Now, save from longtime drummer Tommy Aldridge, every other Whitesnake member joined in the 2000s or later.
