Meg White
{{short description|American retired musician (born 1974)}}
{{good article}}
{{redirect|Megan White|the Australian cricketer|Megan White (cricketer)}}
{{pp-move}}
{{Use American English|date=January 2025}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=January 2025}}
{{Infobox musical artist
| name = Meg White
| image = Meg White 1 (cropped).png
| alt = White glancing upwards to her right
| caption = White performing in 2006
| birth_name = Megan Martha White
| birth_date = {{birth date and age|mf=yes|1974|12|10}}
| birth_place = Grosse Pointe Woods, Michigan, U.S.
| occupation = Musician
| spouse = {{ubl|{{marriage|Jack White|1996|2000|end=divorced}}|{{marriage|Jackson Smith|2009|2013|end=divorced}}}}
| instrument = {{hlist|Drums|vocals}}
| genre = {{hlist|Rock|alternative rock|blues rock|garage rock|indie rock|punk blues}}
| years_active = 1997–2011
| past_member_of = The White Stripes
}}
Megan Martha White (born December 10, 1974) is an American retired musician who achieved international fame as the drummer of the rock duo the White Stripes. Though she typically performed backing vocals for the band, she occasionally sang lead, including in the song "In the Cold, Cold Night".
White began playing the drums on Bastille Day in 1997, and she formed the White Stripes with then-husband Jack White that same year. Their 2001 breakthrough album, White Blood Cells, brought them international fame. Her simultaneous solo ventures include acting, appearing in the 2003 film Coffee and Cigarettes and a 2006 episode of The Simpsons, and briefly modeling. While the band were on tour in support of their 2007 album, Icky Thump, she suffered a bout of acute anxiety, and the remaining dates of the tour were canceled. The band disbanded in 2011 following a lengthy hiatus and she ceased performing.
White is a key artist of the 2000s garage rock revival, and her style of drumming has been called "minimalistic" and "primal" by critics. Reviews of her playing were initially ambivalent, but it has earned retrospective praise and continues to be discussed. She is also noted for her elusive media image, calling herself "very shy" and reclusive. With the White Stripes, she won a Brit Award and six Grammy Awards. In 2015, Rolling Stone included her on their "100 Greatest Drummers of All Time" list. She will be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2025 as a member of the White Stripes.
Early life
Megan Martha White was born in Grosse Pointe Farms, Michigan, on December 10, 1974{{Cite web |last=Duran |first=Anagricel |date=December 10, 2024 |title=Jack White pays tribute to Meg on 50th birthday: "You're still inspiring people, including me" |url=https://www.nme.com/news/music/jack-white-pays-tribute-to-meg-on-50th-birthday-youre-still-inspiring-people-including-me-3820897 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250213102740/https://www.nme.com/news/music/jack-white-pays-tribute-to-meg-on-50th-birthday-youre-still-inspiring-people-including-me-3820897 |archive-date=February 13, 2025 |access-date=February 28, 2025 |website=NME |language=en-GB}} to parents Catherine and Walter Hackett White Jr.{{Cite web |last=McCollum |first=Brian |date=July 24, 2019 |title=Revealing the White Stripes: The inside story of the early years |url=https://www.freep.com/in-depth/entertainment/music/brian-mccollum/2019/07/24/white-stripes-oral-history-early-years/1806748001/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240823055206/https://www.freep.com/in-depth/entertainment/music/brian-mccollum/2019/07/24/white-stripes-oral-history-early-years/1806748001/ |archive-date=August 23, 2024 |access-date=April 18, 2024 |website=Detroit Free Press |language=en-us}}{{cite web|url=http://www.citytowninfo.com/places/michigan/grosse-pointe-farms|publisher=QuinStreet, Inc.|access-date=January 10, 2015|title=Grosse Pointe Farms, Michigan|archive-date=January 11, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150111061716/http://www.citytowninfo.com/places/michigan/grosse-pointe-farms|url-status=live}} She has an older sister, Heather. She was not "brought up in any religion".{{Cite web |last=Gross |first=Terry |date=June 9, 2005 |title=A White-Striped Trip: 'Get Behind Me Satan' |url=https://www.npr.org/2005/06/09/4696110/a-white-striped-trip-get-behind-me-satan |website=NPR}} While growing up, White said she was "shy to the point where I didn't speak. I guess I'm just not so good at socializing. Other than that, it was pretty normal."{{Cite web |title=THE UNOFFICIAL WHITE STRIPES FAQ Version 6 |url=http://www.whitestripes.net/faq.php |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070430232816/http://www.whitestripes.net/faq.php#deadleavescdpromo |archive-date=April 30, 2007 |access-date=May 5, 2025 |website=whitestripes.net}}
In high school, White decided not to go to college and instead pursue a career as a chef. She worked at Memphis Smoke, a restaurant in downtown Royal Oak where she met budding musician Jack Gillis, a fellow high school senior from a Detroit neighborhood known as Mexicantown. They formed a relationship and frequented the coffee shops, local music venues, and record stores of the area.{{sfn|Handyside|2004|p=25}} They married in 1996, and divorced in 2000.
Career
= Formation of The White Stripes and beginnings (1997–2000) =
On Bastille Day in 1997, White began learning to play the drums using Jack's drumkit.{{Cite news |date=August 10, 2001 |title=The White Stripes: Raw Rock Revivalists |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/1484494.stm |access-date=April 12, 2024 |language=en-GB |archive-date=October 4, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241004121844/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/1484494.stm |url-status=live }} Jack recalled that playing with White was "liberating and refreshing", opening up "something" within him.{{cite magazine |last=Fricke |first=David |date=September 8, 2005 |title=White on White |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/news/white-on-white-20050908 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150224010127/http://www.rollingstone.com/music/news/white-on-white-20050908 |archive-date=February 24, 2015 |access-date=September 4, 2017 |magazine=Rolling Stone |pages=66–72 |issue=982}} The two then formed the White Stripes, where they stuck to certain motifs: They presented themselves as siblings to an unknowing public,{{cite news |last=Heaney |first=Mick |date=April 28, 2002 |title=The White Stripes |newspaper=The Sunday Times}}{{Cite news |last=Cameron |first=Keith |date=March 29, 2003 |title=The sweetheart deal |url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/2003/mar/29/artsfeatures.popandrock |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131204200224/http://www.theguardian.com/music/2003/mar/29/artsfeatures.popandrock |archive-date=December 4, 2013 |access-date=January 18, 2024 |work=The Guardian |language=en-GB |issn=0261-3077}} and kept to a chromatic theme, dressing only in red, white, and black.{{cite magazine |last=Killingsworth |first=Jason |date=July 27, 2007 |title=The White Stripes Play Us a Little Number |url=http://www.pastemagazine.com/articles/2007/07/the-white-stripes-play-us-a-little-number.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140619194746/http://www.pastemagazine.com/articles/2007/07/the-white-stripes-play-us-a-little-number.html |archive-date=June 19, 2014 |access-date=August 5, 2014 |magazine=Paste}}{{Cite magazine |last=Wilkinson |first=Alec |date=March 5, 2017 |title=Jack White's Infinite Imagination |url=https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2017/03/13/jack-whites-infinite-imagination |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200223155344/https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2017/03/13/jack-whites-infinite-imagination |archive-date=February 23, 2020 |access-date=January 18, 2024 |magazine=The New Yorker |language=en-US |issn=0028-792X}} They played their first gig at the Gold Dollar in Detroit,{{Cite web |title=The White Stripes Songs, Albums, Reviews, Bio & More |url=https://www.allmusic.com/artist/the-white-stripes-mn0000921710 |access-date=January 18, 2024 |website=AllMusic |language=en}}{{cite magazine |last=Scaggs |first=Austin |date=May 1, 2003 |title=Jack White |magazine=Rolling Stone |page=16 |issue=921}} and achieved popularity in Michigan's underground garage rock scene,{{cite magazine |last=Klosterman |first=Chuck |date=October 2002
|title=The Garage |magazine=Spin |volume=18 |issue=10 |pages=64–68}}{{cite news |last=Sinclair |first=David |date=August 7, 2001 |title=Genuine trendy success without trying |newspaper=The Times}} opening for and playing with established local bands such as Bantam Rooster and the Dirtbombs, among others.{{cite magazine |last=McCollum |first=Brian |date=September 2003 |title=Red, White, and Cool |magazine=Spin |volume=19 |issue=9 |pages=68–74}} In 1998, they were approached by Dave Buick of the Detroit-based independent record label Italy Records, who offered to pay for their debut single. "Let's Shake Hands" was then released in February 1998.{{Cite web |last=Coombe |first=Doug |date=April 30, 2008 |title=Motor City Cribs (Metro Times Detroit) |url=http://www.metrotimes.com/editorial/story.asp?id=12835 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080502061913/http://www.metrotimes.com/editorial/story.asp?id=12835 |archive-date=May 2, 2008 |access-date=April 12, 2024 |website=Metro Times}}{{Cite magazine |date=December 4, 2020 |title=See White Stripes' Animated 'Let's Shake Hands' Video |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/white-stripes-animated-lets-shake-hands-video-1098818/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240708183832/https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/white-stripes-animated-lets-shake-hands-video-1098818/ |archive-date=July 8, 2024 |access-date=April 12, 2024 |magazine=Rolling Stone}}
File:Meg White in 2000 (cropped 2).png
In 1999, the band signed with the California-based label Sympathy for the Record Industry, and released their self-titled debut album. AllMusic said that White's drumming "balances out the fretwork and the fretting with methodical, spare, and booming cymbal, bass drum, and snare..."{{Citation |title=The White Stripes - The White Stripes {{!}} Album {{!}} AllMusic |url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/the-white-stripes-mw0000246565 |access-date=April 12, 2024 |language=en |archive-date=December 25, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231225220018/https://www.allmusic.com/album/the-white-stripes-mw0000246565 |url-status=live }} After their divorce in 2000, Meg White insisted the band continue.{{cite news |last=Brown |first=Jake |date=June 9, 2002 |title=White Stripes Divorce Certificate |url=http://gloriousnoise.com/2002/white_stripes_divorce_certific |newspaper=Glorious Noise |archive-date=August 26, 2019 |access-date=June 10, 2014 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20190826183429/http://gloriousnoise.com/2002/white_stripes_divorce_certific |url-status=live }}{{cite magazine |last=Shlanger |first=Talia |date=September 21, 2018 |title=Meg White Is The 21st Century's Loudest Introvert |magazine=NPR}} Their second album, De Stijl, was released in 2000.{{cite web |url=http://www.musicstack.com/album/white+stripes/de+stijl |title=White Stripes – De Stijl |access-date=August 26, 2008 |work=MusicStack |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071120090931/http://www.musicstack.com/album/white%2Bstripes/de%2Bstijl |archive-date=November 20, 2007 |url-status=dead }} Rolling Stone{{'}}s Jenny Eliscu praised White's drumming, saying it "proves that you don't need bombast to make a blues explosion".{{Cite magazine |last=Eliscu |first=Jenny |date=November 23, 2000 |title=De Stijl |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-album-reviews/de-stijl-248359/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250220161339/https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-album-reviews/de-stijl-248359/ |archive-date=February 20, 2025 |access-date=April 12, 2024 |magazine=Rolling Stone |language=en-US}} It became a sleeper hit, after the White Stripes gained popularity in 2002, reaching 38 on Billboard{{'}}s Independent Albums.{{Citation |title=De Stijl - The White Stripes {{!}} Album {{!}} AllMusic |url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/de-stijl-mw0000068146 |access-date=April 18, 2024 |language=en |archive-date=April 25, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240425012745/https://www.allmusic.com/album/de-stijl-mw0000068146 |url-status=live }}
= Mainstream breakthrough and solo career (2001–2006) =
The White Stripes rose to widespread recognition in 2001 with the release of their album White Blood Cells. Meg shared vocal duties with Jack on the tracks "Hotel Yorba" and "This Protector", and also on the Loretta Lynn cover "Rated X", featured as the B-side to "Hotel Yorba".{{Cite magazine |last=Betts |first=Stephen L. |date=January 29, 2015 |title=Watch the White Stripes Do Loretta Lynn Proud |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-country/flashback-the-white-stripes-cover-loretta-lynns-gutsy-rated-x-38378/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240301170848/https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-country/flashback-the-white-stripes-cover-loretta-lynns-gutsy-rated-x-38378/ |archive-date=March 1, 2024 |access-date=January 21, 2024 |magazine=Rolling Stone |language=en-US}} White Blood Cells would have a major label re-release with V2 Records in 2002, which brought them to the forefront of the garage rock revival and made them one of the most acclaimed bands of the year.{{Cite magazine |date=October 28, 2008 |title=White Stripes: Biography : Rolling Stone |magazine=Rolling Stone |url=http://www.rollingstone.com/artists/whitestripes/biography |access-date=March 10, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081028080730/http://www.rollingstone.com/artists/whitestripes/biography |archive-date=October 28, 2008 }} It was their last album to be released with the "Sympathy for the Record Industry". Chris Deville of Stereogum praised Meg White for bashing "the bejesus out of her drums" and called the pair "too compelling for the rest of the world to ignore".{{Cite web |date=July 2, 2021 |title=The White Stripes Released 'White Blood Cells' 20 Years Ago This Week |url=https://www.stereogum.com/2152673/the-white-stripes-white-blood-cells-turns-20/reviews/the-anniversary/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240427024622/https://www.stereogum.com/2152673/the-white-stripes-white-blood-cells-turns-20/reviews/the-anniversary/ |archive-date=April 27, 2024 |access-date=April 12, 2024 |website=Stereogum |language=en}} The album included the single "Fell in Love with a Girl", which won them three awards at the 2002 MTV Video Music Awards.{{Cite web |title=Rock On The Net: 2002 MTV Video Music Awards |url=http://www.rockonthenet.com/archive/2002/mtvvmas.htm |access-date=April 12, 2024 |website=www.rockonthenet.com |archive-date=July 18, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130718065914/http://www.rockonthenet.com/archive/2002/mtvvmas.htm |url-status=live }}
The White Stripes released their fourth studio album, Elephant, through V2 Records and XL Recordings in 2003. The album was acclaimed, and considered by AllMusic to be the band's best work.{{Citation |title=Elephant - The White Stripes {{!}} Album {{!}} AllMusic |url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/elephant-mw0000022228 |access-date=April 12, 2024 |language=en}} Their continued success helped establish Meg and Jack White as key figures of 2000s rock, and Elephant, along with White Blood Cells, were included on numerous editions of Rolling Stone
White made her film debut appearing with Jack in Jim Jarmusch's 2003 film Coffee and Cigarettes.{{Cite web |last=Willman |first=Chris |date=May 21, 2004 |title=The White Stripes make movies, too |url=https://ew.com/article/2004/05/21/white-stripes-make-movies-too/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240220063950/https://ew.com/article/2004/05/21/white-stripes-make-movies-too/ |archive-date=February 20, 2024 |access-date=March 21, 2024 |website=Entertainment Weekly |language=en}} They star in the segment "Jack Shows Meg His Tesla Coil", which expands on Nikola Tesla and White Stripes motifs such as childhood innocence.{{Cite web |last=pbadmin |date=May 12, 2004 |title=The White Stripes on Coffee and Cigarettes |url=https://www.comingsoon.net/extras/features/4655-the-white-stripes-on-coffee-and-cigarettes |access-date=March 23, 2024 |website=ComingSoon.net - Movie Trailers, TV & Streaming News, and More |language=en-US |archive-date=April 4, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230404184045/https://www.comingsoon.net/extras/features/4655-the-white-stripes-on-coffee-and-cigarettes |url-status=live }} In 2004, she starred in the band's first music film Under Blackpool Lights, which was shot entirely on super 8 film.{{Cite news |last=Bradshaw |first=Peter |date=November 5, 2004 |title=The White Stripes Under Blackpool Lights |url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/2004/nov/05/thewhitestripes |access-date=March 21, 2024 |work=The Guardian |language=en-GB |issn=0261-3077}}{{Cite web |last=Murray |first=Noel |date=December 27, 2004 |title=The White Stripes: Under Blackpool Lights |url=https://www.avclub.com/the-white-stripes-under-blackpool-lights-1798200273 |access-date=March 21, 2024 |website=The A.V. Club |language=en}} Jamie Russell of BBC described her performance as "orgasmically pounding the drums" and "exhilarating".{{Cite web |last=Russell |first=Jamie |date=November 1, 2004 |title=The White Stripes: Under Blackpool Lights (2004) |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/films/2004/11/01/the_white_stripes_under_blackpool_lights_2004_review.shtml |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241208125742/https://www.bbc.co.uk/films/2004/11/01/the_white_stripes_under_blackpool_lights_2004_review.shtml |archive-date=December 8, 2024 |access-date=April 12, 2024 |website=BBC}} Meg White appears on the cover of Whirlwind Heat's single "Pink" (2004) wearing a bunny costume; the photo was taken while the White Stripes and Whirlwind Heat toured together in Japan.{{Cite web |last=NME |date=February 9, 2004 |title=White rabbit! |url=https://www.nme.com/news/music/whirlwind-heat-1369051 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240617001934/https://www.nme.com/news/music/whirlwind-heat-1369051 |archive-date=June 17, 2024 |access-date=June 17, 2024 |website=NME |language=en-GB}} Also in 2004, White played Little Red Riding Hood in the music video for "Cha Cha Twist" by the Detroit Cobras.{{Cite web |date=January 15, 2022 |title=R.I.P. Rachel Nagy, Lead Singer of The Detroit Cobras Has Died |url=https://consequence.net/2022/01/rachel-nagy-the-detroit-cobras-death/ |access-date=June 17, 2024 |language=en-US |archive-date=March 27, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230327010653/https://consequence.net/2022/01/rachel-nagy-the-detroit-cobras-death/ |url-status=live }}
The band's fifth album Get Behind Me Satan saw the pair experimenting on their sound, with Meg White using percussion bells, maracas and tambourines. Critically acclaimed, it was released in 2005 and won the band their second Grammy for Best Alternative Music Album.{{Cite web |title=Rock On The Net: 48th Annual Grammy Awards - 2006 |url=http://www.rockonthenet.com/archive/2006/grammys.htm |access-date=March 8, 2023 |website=www.rockonthenet.com |archive-date=September 30, 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070930204555/http://www.rockonthenet.com/archive/2006/grammys.htm |url-status=live }} She performed lead vocals on "Passive Manipulation", for which Rob Sheffield of Rolling Stone described her vocals as "chilling"{{Cite magazine |date=June 16, 2005 |title=Get Behind Me Satan |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-album-reviews/get-behind-me-satan-255286/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230920230329/https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-album-reviews/get-behind-me-satan-255286/ |archive-date=September 20, 2023 |access-date=January 18, 2024 |magazine=Rolling Stone}} while Matthew Murphy of Pitchfork thought that the song "begs the gentle suggestion that Meg not be allowed to sing lead".{{Cite web |last=Murphy |first=Matthew |date=June 5, 2005 |title=The White Stripes: Get Behind Me Satan |url=https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/8653-get-behind-me-satan/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240124042052/https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/8653-get-behind-me-satan/ |archive-date=January 24, 2024 |access-date=January 18, 2024 |website=Pitchfork |language=en-US}}
White modeled for Marc Jacobs' 2006 Spring line.{{cite magazine |author= |date=January 3, 2006 |title=Meg White becomes a model |url=http://www.nme.com/news/white-stripes/21859 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060105090145/http://www.nme.com/news/white-stripes/21859 |archive-date=January 5, 2006 |access-date=June 2, 2006 |magazine=NME}} 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.{{cite web |author= |year=2006 |title=Let's Go To Prison |url=http://www.worstpreviews.com/review.php?id=395§ion=preview |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181029032225/http://www.worstpreviews.com/review.php?id=395§ion=preview |archive-date=October 29, 2018 |access-date=October 19, 2014 |website=WorstPreviews}}{{cite web |last=Hutchinson |first=Sean |date=October 10, 2014 |title=15 Things You Probably Didn't Know About 'Let's Go to Prison' |url=http://mentalfloss.com/article/59311/15-things-you-probably-didnt-know-about-lets-go-prison |access-date=October 19, 2014 |work=Mental Floss}} The White Stripes guest starred on The Simpsons in an episode titled "Jazzy and the Pussycats", which first aired on September 17, 2006.{{cite web |last=Montgomery |first=James |date=January 17, 2006 |title=White Stripes Get Entangled In A Simpson Family Feud |url=http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1520802/20060117/white_stripes.jhtml?headlines=true |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060206090519/http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1520802/20060117/white_stripes.jhtml?headlines=true |archive-date=February 6, 2006 |work=MTV}} White had previously expressed interest in a Simpsons role, saying: "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."{{Cite web |last=NME |date=September 18, 2006 |title=Watch The White Stripes' 'Simpsons' appearance |url=https://www.nme.com/news/music/the-white-stripes-159-1354626 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230406002336/https://www.nme.com/news/music/the-white-stripes-159-1354626 |archive-date=April 6, 2023 |access-date=April 6, 2023 |website=NME |language=en-GB}}{{Cite web |last=Schmidt |first=Katie |date=December 17, 2020 |title=10 'Simpsons' band cameos that'll make you wish you lived in Springfield |url=https://www.altpress.com/simpsons-best-band-cameos/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230406002336/https://www.altpress.com/simpsons-best-band-cameos/ |archive-date=April 6, 2023 |access-date=April 6, 2023 |website=Alternative Press |language=en}}
= Later works and disbandment (2007–2011) =
File:Jack & Meg, The White Stripes.jpg performing at the Wireless Festival in 2007]]
The White Stripes released their sixth and final album, Icky Thump, in 2007. Winning the Grammys for Best Alternative Music Album and Best Rock Song,{{Cite web |title=Rock On The Net: 50th Annual Grammy Awards - 2008 |url=http://www.rockonthenet.com/archive/2008/grammys.htm |access-date=March 8, 2023 |website=www.rockonthenet.com |archive-date=July 3, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130703213830/http://www.rockonthenet.com/archive/2008/grammys.htm |url-status=live }} the album was praised by the critics and saw the band returning to styles present on their first album.{{Cite web |date=August 14, 2014 |title=Greetings from The White Stripes |url=http://www.whitestripes.com/ |access-date=April 12, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140814060503/http://www.whitestripes.com/ |archive-date=August 14, 2014 }} White spoke on the bagpipe-heavy track "St. Andrew (This Battle Is in the Air)" and provided backing vocals for the tracks "You Don't Know What Love Is (You Just Do as You're Told)" and "Rag and Bone".{{Cite web |last=NME |date=April 24, 2007 |title=World exclusive – White Stripes to make their return with NME |url=https://www.nme.com/news/music/the-white-stripes-143-1351635 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190402225107/https://www.nme.com/news/music/the-white-stripes-143-1351635 |archive-date=April 2, 2019 |access-date=January 18, 2024 |website=NME |language=en-GB}}{{Cite web |last=Drumming |first=Neil |date=June 15, 2007 |title=Icky Thump |url=https://ew.com/article/2007/06/15/icky-thump/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240118021823/https://ew.com/article/2007/06/15/icky-thump/ |archive-date=January 18, 2024 |access-date=January 18, 2024 |website=Entertainment Weekly |language=en}}
In the summer of 2007, before a show in Southaven, Mississippi, Ben Blackwell (Jack White's nephew and the group's archivist) recalls that Meg White 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."{{Cite web |last=Irwin |first=Corey |date=July 31, 2022 |title=When Meg White Predicted the White Stripes' Final Concert |url=https://ultimateclassicrock.com/white-stripes-final-concert/ |access-date=March 10, 2023 |website=Ultimate Classic Rock |language=en |archive-date=March 10, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230310172601/https://ultimateclassicrock.com/white-stripes-final-concert/ |url-status=live }}{{cite news |last=Eells |first=Josh |date=April 5, 2012 |title=Jack Outside the Box |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2012/04/08/magazine/jack-white-is-the-savviest-rock-star-of-our-time.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161101103852/http://www.nytimes.com/2012/04/08/magazine/jack-white-is-the-savviest-rock-star-of-our-time.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0 |archive-date=November 1, 2016 |access-date=October 15, 2014 |newspaper=The New York Times}} On September 11, 2007, the White Stripes announced via their website that they were canceling 18 tour dates due to White's acute anxiety.{{cite web |title=9.11.07 |url=http://www.whitestripes.com/news/news.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070902222517/http://www.whitestripes.com/news/news.html |archive-date=September 2, 2007 |access-date=September 12, 2007 |website=WhiteStripes.com}}{{Cite news |date=September 12, 2007 |title=White Stripes shelve US concerts |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/6990982.stm |access-date=January 18, 2024 |language=en-GB |archive-date=August 2, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160802103554/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/6990982.stm |url-status=live }} The following day, the duo canceled the remainder of their 2007 UK tour dates as well.{{cite news |date=September 13, 2007 |title=The White Stripes cancel UK tour |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/6993047.stm |access-date=September 14, 2007 |work=BBC News}} Jack White worked with other artists in the meantime, but Meg White 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.{{cite magazine |last=Kreps |first=Daniel |date=June 9, 2008 |title=Meg White Makes Cameo During Raconteurs Concert |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/news/meg-white-makes-cameo-during-raconteurs-concert-20080609 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150924203432/http://www.rollingstone.com/music/news/meg-white-makes-cameo-during-raconteurs-concert-20080609 |archive-date=September 24, 2015 |access-date=October 19, 2014 |magazine=Rolling Stone}}{{Cite magazine |last=Graff |first=Gary |date=June 9, 2008 |title=Meg White Surprises With Raconteurs In Detroit |url=https://www.billboard.com/music/music-news/meg-white-surprises-with-raconteurs-in-detroit-1045136/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240919154648/https://www.billboard.com/music/music-news/meg-white-surprises-with-raconteurs-in-detroit-1045136/ |archive-date=September 19, 2024 |access-date=April 22, 2024 |magazine=Billboard}} 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.{{cite web |last=Bosso |first=Joe |date=May 6, 2009 |title=Jack White on The White Stripes' future |url=http://www.musicradar.com/news/guitars/jack-white-on-the-white-stripes-future-206044/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120310171026/http://www.musicradar.com/news/guitars/jack-white-on-the-white-stripes-future-206044/ |archive-date=March 10, 2012 |access-date=April 5, 2010 |work=MusicRadar}} He explained: "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."
File:Meg White en Barcelona.JPG in Barcelona in 2007]]
Jack revealed the band's plan to release a seventh album by the summer of 2009.{{cite magazine |url=http://www.billboard.com/articles/news/1045136/meg-white-surprises-with-raconteurs-in-detroit |title=Meg White Surprises With Raconteurs In Detroit |magazine=Billboard |date=June 9, 2008 |access-date=October 13, 2014 |archive-date=February 23, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160223010243/http://www.billboard.com/articles/news/1045136/meg-white-surprises-with-raconteurs-in-detroit |url-status=live }}{{cite web |url=http://www.delawareonline.com/blogs/2009/02/i-just-dont-know-what-to-do-with-myself.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160104183855/http://archive.delawareonline.com/blogs/2009/02/i-just-dont-know-what-to-do-with-myself.html?from=global |archive-date=January 4, 2016 |title=I Just Don't Know What To Do With Myself |publisher=The News Journal |website=delawareonline.com |date=February 11, 2009 |access-date=October 4, 2011}} 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".{{Cite magazine |last=Greene |first=Andy |date=March 24, 2016 |title=The White Stripes Take Their Final Bow on 'Conan' |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/flashback-white-stripes-take-their-final-bow-on-conan-199407/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240118021823/https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/flashback-white-stripes-take-their-final-bow-on-conan-199407/ |archive-date=January 18, 2024 |access-date=January 18, 2024 |magazine=Rolling Stone}}{{Cite web |last=Lee |first=Jamie |date=February 1, 2023 |title=Where Is Meg White Now? A Look at Her History With the White Stripes and Where She Is Today |url=https://www.distractify.com/p/meg-white-now |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231126141828/https://www.distractify.com/p/meg-white-now |archive-date=November 26, 2023 |access-date=November 26, 2023 |website=Distractify |language=en-US}}{{Cite web |last=Yoo |first=Noah |date=October 12, 2017 |title=Conan O'Brien Tells Story of How the White Stripes Closed "Late Night": Listen |url=https://pitchfork.com/news/conan-obrien-tells-story-of-how-the-white-stripes-closed-late-night-listen/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240122054724/https://pitchfork.com/news/conan-obrien-tells-story-of-how-the-white-stripes-closed-late-night-listen/ |archive-date=January 22, 2024 |access-date=June 28, 2024 |website=Pitchfork |language=en-US}} 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.{{cite web |url=http://www.whitestripes.com/film/film.html |title=Whitestripes.com |publisher=Whitestripes.com |access-date=April 5, 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100421070540/http://www.whitestripes.com/film/film.html |archive-date=April 21, 2010 }}{{Cite web |last=Dehaas |first=Josh |date=July 22, 2009 |title=TIFF's documentary films observe an askew planet (ours) |url=https://torontolife.com/culture/tiffs-documentary-films-observe-an-askew-planet-ours/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240128053642/https://torontolife.com/culture/tiffs-documentary-films-observe-an-askew-planet-ours/ |archive-date=January 28, 2024 |access-date=January 28, 2024 |website=Toronto Life |language=en-US}}{{Cite web |last=CBC Arts |date=July 21, 2009 |title=White Stripes Canadian tour doc to premiere at TIFF |url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/entertainment/white-stripes-canadian-tour-doc-to-premiere-at-tiff-1.785482 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240128053642/https://www.cbc.ca/news/entertainment/white-stripes-canadian-tour-doc-to-premiere-at-tiff-1.785482 |archive-date=January 28, 2024 |access-date=January 28, 2024 |website=Canadian Broadcasting Corporation}} Directed by Emmett Malloy, the film documents the band's summer 2007 tour across Canada and contains live concert and off-stage footage.{{cite web |url=http://www.whitestripes.com/news/newsExtra.html |title=Whitestripes.com |publisher=Whitestripes.com |access-date=April 5, 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100403043219/http://www.whitestripes.com/news/newsExtra.html |archive-date=April 3, 2010 }}{{Cite news |date=July 22, 2009 |title=Juno team returns to TIFF |url=https://www.theglobeandmail.com/arts/film/juno-team-returns-to-tiff/article4213303/ |access-date=January 28, 2024 |work=The Globe and Mail |language=en-CA}} Bill Bradley for Vanity Fair opined that it was "impossible" not to see Meg as "road-weary and worn-out" at the end of the film.{{Cite magazine |last=Bradley |first=Bill |date=March 15, 2010 |title=Buy It, Steal It, Skip It: The White Stripes' Under Great White Northern Lights |url=https://www.vanityfair.com/culture/2010/03/buy-it-steal-it-skip-it-the-white-stripes-under-great-white-northern-lights |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150413015429/https://www.vanityfair.com/culture/2010/03/buy-it-steal-it-skip-it-the-white-stripes-under-great-white-northern-lights |archive-date=April 13, 2015 |access-date=February 20, 2024 |magazine=Vanity Fair |language=en-US}} White appeared with Jack in the 2009 documentary It Might Get Loud.{{Cite web |last=Snierson |first=Dan |date=September 4, 2009 |title=Jimmy Page and Jack White talk about 'It Might Get Loud', their new documentary with the Edge |url=https://ew.com/article/2009/09/04/jimmy-page-and-jack-white-talk-about-it-might-get-loud-their-new-documentary-with-the-edge/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230404053214/https://ew.com/article/2009/09/04/jimmy-page-and-jack-white-talk-about-it-might-get-loud-their-new-documentary-with-the-edge/ |archive-date=April 4, 2023 |access-date=April 8, 2023 |website=Entertainment Weekly |language=en}}
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. Their statement said it was not due to health issues or artistic differences, but "mostly to preserve what is beautiful and special about the band".{{cite news |last=Hill |first=Amelia |date=February 2, 2011 |title=White Stripes have finally split, band members tell fans |url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/2011/feb/02/white-stripes-announce-split |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141016212805/http://www.theguardian.com/music/2011/feb/02/white-stripes-announce-split |archive-date=October 16, 2014 |access-date=August 9, 2014 |work=The Guardian}} White has not been active in the industry since.{{Cite web |date=January 31, 2023 |title=Music artists who walked away at the top of their game |url=https://www.yardbarker.com/entertainment/articles/music_artists_who_walked_away_at_the_top_of_their_game/s1__34503320 |access-date=March 10, 2023 |website=Yardbarker |language=en |archive-date=March 10, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230310173808/https://www.yardbarker.com/entertainment/articles/music_artists_who_walked_away_at_the_top_of_their_game/s1__34503320 |url-status=live }}
Artistry
= Equipment =
Image:Meg White.jpg drums and Paiste cymbals]]
Throughout her tenure with the White Stripes, White extensively used the Ludwig Classic Maple kit with Paiste cymbals.{{Cite web |last=Osborn |first=Kevin |date=July 9, 2018 |title=3 Iconic Drum Kits and the Stories Behind Them |url=https://www.sweetwater.com/insync/3-iconic-drum-kits-stories-behind/ |access-date=March 28, 2024 |website=inSync |language=en |archive-date=December 11, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241211010756/https://www.sweetwater.com/insync/3-iconic-drum-kits-stories-behind/ |url-status=live }} From their early years to Get Behind Me Satan, the resonant heads of the toms and bass drum almost exclusively featured peppermint swirls.{{Cite web |date=July 7, 2023 |title=Meg White: 3 Reasons Why She's A Drumming Genius - Drumeo Beat |url=https://www.drumeo.com/beat/meg-white-white-stripes-drum-genius/ |access-date=March 28, 2024 |website=Free Online Drum Magazine {{!}} The Drumeo Beat |language=en |archive-date=March 28, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240328054214/https://www.drumeo.com/beat/meg-white-white-stripes-drum-genius/ |url-status=live }}{{cite web |last=Porter |first=Tom |date=January 29, 2009 |title=White Stripes' Meg White auctioning Ludwig kit |url=http://www.musicradar.com/us/news/drums/white-stripes-meg-white-auctioning-ludwig-kit-194027 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141106093531/http://www.musicradar.com/us/news/drums/white-stripes-meg-white-auctioning-ludwig-kit-194027 |archive-date=November 6, 2014 |access-date=October 18, 2014 |website=MusicRadar}} The idea to do so came from Jack, when he and Meg noticed a bag of peppermint candy in a drugstore, and Jack said "That should be painted on your bass drum because you've been drumming like a little kid".{{Cite news |date=January 23, 2024 |title=The White Stripes, Plain and Simple |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/lifestyle/2002/03/29/the-white-stripes-plain-and-simple/cbba4084-4f26-482d-9146-fb61894dcb05/ |access-date=March 28, 2024 |newspaper=The Washington Post |language=en-US |issn=0190-8286}} The peppermint decor became signature in her kit, and appeared in several live shows and music videos such as "The Hardest Button to Button" and "Seven Nation Army". She donated her last 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.{{cite magazine |last=Breihan |first=Tom |date=January 30, 2009 |title=Meg White Auctions Drums for Charity |url=http://pitchfork.com/news/34498-meg-white-auctions-drums-for-charity |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141110051429/http://pitchfork.com/news/34498-meg-white-auctions-drums-for-charity/ |archive-date=November 10, 2014 |access-date=October 18, 2014 |magazine=Pitchfork}}
While recording From the Basement: The White Stripes, the design on the bass drum was switched to an image of her hand holding the apple from the Get Behind Me Satan 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.{{Cite news |last=Powers |first=Ann |date=February 27, 2001 |title=POP REVIEW; Intellectualizing the Music Or Simply Experiencing It |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2001/02/27/arts/pop-review-intellectualizing-the-music-or-simply-experiencing-it.html |access-date=January 28, 2023 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331 |archive-date=March 6, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160306202428/http://www.nytimes.com/2001/02/27/arts/pop-review-intellectualizing-the-music-or-simply-experiencing-it.html |url-status=live }} 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. She also used Remo and Ludwig drumheads, various percussion instruments and Vater drumsticks.{{Cite web |title=Meg White |url=https://equipboard.com/pros/megan-martha-white |access-date=2025-02-28 |website=equipboard.com |language=en |archive-date=March 30, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240330152954/https://equipboard.com/pros/megan-martha-white |url-status=live }}
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.{{Cite web |title=Ladies First {{!}} The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum |url=http://rockhall.com/education/resources/ladies-first/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110613021001/http://rockhall.com/education/resources/ladies-first/ |archive-date=June 13, 2011 |access-date=February 28, 2025 |website=Rock and Roll Hall of Fame}}
= Influences =
{{Quote box
| quote = "I don't want to know about my biggest idols. I don't want to read their autobiographies, I don't want to find out what they're really like."
| author = – White speaking of her influences
| width = 20em
}}
White's musical influences are wide and varied. Bob Dylan is her favorite artist and primary inspiration.{{cite web |title=Meg White |url=http://editthis.info/stripespedia/Meg_White |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160206184859/http://editthis.info/stripespedia/Meg_White |archive-date=February 6, 2016 |access-date=June 20, 2018 |work=Stripespedia}} Other inspirations are the Detroit protopunk bands like the MC5 and the Stooges, the blues musicians Son House, Blind Willie McTell and Robert Johnson, the rock groups the Cramps and the Velvet Underground, and the early Los Angeles punk blues band the Gun Club.{{cite web |last=Adams |first=Owen |date=July 18, 2007 |title=Why The White Stripes want to join the Gun Club |url=http://blogs.guardian.co.uk/music/2007/07/why_the_white_stripes_want_to.html |access-date=August 30, 2008 |work=Guardian |format=Music Blogs |location=London |archive-date=June 3, 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080603085504/http://blogs.guardian.co.uk/music/2007/07/why_the_white_stripes_want_to.html |url-status=live }} She is also a fan of the traditional country artists Hank Williams and Loretta Lynn.{{Cite magazine |last=Dunn |first=Jancee |date=May 27, 2004 |title=Loretta Lynn: Honky-Tonk Woman |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/loretta-lynn-honky-tonk-woman-187968/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240910005247/https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/loretta-lynn-honky-tonk-woman-187968/ |archive-date=September 10, 2024 |access-date=September 10, 2024 |magazine=Rolling Stone |language=en-US}}{{cite news |last=Perry |first=Andrew |date=November 14, 2004 |title=What's eating Jack? |url=http://observer.guardian.co.uk/omm/story/0,,1347715,00.html |access-date=August 14, 2007 |work=The Observer |location=London}} Some inspirations for her drumming style include Peggy O'Neill of The Gories and Moe Tucker of the Velvet Underground, the latter of which often compared by music critics with White.{{Cite web |last=Male |first=Andrew |date=April 28, 2025 |title=Jack White: "I wanted to write a song the way Michael Jackson did…" |url=https://www.mojo4music.com/articles/new-music/jack-white-i-wanted-to-write-a-song-the-way-michael-jackson-did/ |access-date=May 2, 2025 |website=MOJO |language=en}}
Having formed in Detroit's garage rock scene of the late 1990s and early 2000s, White's contemporaries included bands such as the Von Bondies, the Dirtbombs, and the Detroit Cobras. She would later collaborate with them and other Detroit-based bands for the compilation album Sympathetic Sounds of Detroit, recorded in Jack's living room.
= Style =
{{Listen
| filename = Seven Nation Army (sample).ogg
| title = "Seven Nation Army"
| description = The opening of "Seven Nation Army" featuring White's driving quarter note groove
| filename2 = The White Stripes - Fell in Love With a Girl.ogg
| title2 = "Fell in Love With a Girl"
| description2 = In "Fell in Love With a Girl", White plays a high-speed stuttering beat
}}
White's pre-show warm up included "whiskey and Red Bull."{{Cite web |last=DeRogatis |first=Jim |date=November 2002 |title=Drumming for the New Duos {{!}} Modern Drummer Trends Feature |url=http://www.jimdero.com/OtherWritings/OtherMDDuos.htm |access-date=January 28, 2023 |website=www.jimdero.com |archive-date=January 28, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230128083055/http://www.jimdero.com/OtherWritings/OtherMDDuos.htm |url-status=live }} Her drum beats and technique have been analyzed and documented by many critics and musicians. In "Seven Nation Army", White plays a driving quarter note groove meant to mimic a heartbeat and punctuate the guitar. The opening makes extensive use of the bass drum, hi-hat, and floor tom. The snare drum is introduced into the pre-chorus and carries into the chorus with a crash cymbal. In "Fell in Love With a Girl", White plays a "hyper, stuttering rock beat" with a skipped snare drum and prominent crash cymbals.{{Citation |last=Maginnis |first=Tom |title=Fell in Love with a Girl Review by Tom Maginnis |url=https://www.allmusic.com/song/fell-in-love-with-a-girl-mt0030311594 |access-date=April 28, 2025 |publisher=AllMusic |language=en}}
Brandon Toews of Drumeo wrote that her drum beats were "full of choices most drummers wouldn't make, and that's why she's such a unique player." The New York Times{{'s}} Kelefa Sanneh agreed, calling her drumming "more sophisticated" than people realize. "She refuses to imitate a metronome, refuses to flatten the songs by making them conform to a steady pulse. Instead she seems to hear the music the way Mr. White does: as a series of phrases, each with its own shape and tempo."{{Cite news |last=Sanneh |first=Kelefa |date=July 26, 2007 |title=If Something's Missing, All the Better |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2007/07/26/arts/music/26whit.html |access-date=September 18, 2024 |work=The New York Times |archive-date=September 18, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240918135548/https://www.nytimes.com/2007/07/26/arts/music/26whit.html |url-status=live }}
In reference to her "primal" approach to drumming, White remarked: "That is my strength. A lot of drummers would feel weird about being that simplistic." Furthermore, saying that she respects other drumming techniques, but concludes that her style suits the band best. When her technique is criticized, which "really bothers her", she reminds herself that her technique is important for the band and tries to take enjoyment from her work. Jack lauded her style as the band's best element, and he couldn't imagine recording with anybody other than White, "because it would have been too complicated... It was my doorway to playing the blues".
Reception and impact
= Contemporary reviews =
White's minimalistic approach to drumming divided audiences and critics of the time. Dan Kilian and Ryan Schreiber of Pitchfork said in 2001 that "Meg White's kit is bashed with such force you'd imagine her as some kind of incredible hulk{{Sic}}, though in photos, she appears the prototypical indie girl-- waifish, with pigtails and a nasty smirk. Yet she whips all of her 98 pounds into a tornadic fury like E. Honda's hundred-hand slap."{{Cite web |last=Kilian, Schriber |first=Dan, Ryan |title=The White Stripes: White Blood Cells |url=https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/8651-white-blood-cells/ |access-date=April 12, 2024 |website=Pitchfork |language=en-US}} After the White Stripes' breakthrough in 2001, UK newspaper The Times said that White "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." In a 2002 The Washington Post article analyzing the band's style, described White's drumming as "a surprisingly full sound, loud and raucous -- like the Carpenters on steroids". 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".Klosterman, Chuck (June 2002), "The White Stripes". Spin. 18(6):38
There was criticism of White's performances and technique. While Kilian and Schreiber at Pitchfork praised White's drumming, Brent DiCrescenzo called it "pancake-handed" and "sloppy" in 2003;{{Cite web |last=DiCrescenzo |first=Brent |date=April 1, 2003 |title=The White Stripes: Elephant |url=https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/8652-elephant/ |access-date=May 5, 2025 |website=Pitchfork |language=en-US}} Associated Press called White's playing "maddeningly rudimentary" in 2003.The Associated Press (April 4, 2003). "The White Stripes (Third Man Records)", The Canadian Press. The satirical news site The Onion featured the 2007 headline "Meg White Drum Solo Maintains Steady Beat For 23 Minutes".(June 5, 2007). [http://www.theonion.com/articles/meg-white-drum-solo-maintains-steady-beat-for-23-m,9902/ "Meg White Drum Solo Maintains Steady Beat For 23 Minutes"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141024082235/http://www.theonion.com/articles/meg-white-drum-solo-maintains-steady-beat-for-23-m,9902/|date=October 24, 2014}}, The Onion. (43):23 In a review of their 2007 Madison Square Garden performance, a writer for Vulture said of her singing: "Oh, God, it was awful ... Meg, great as she looks onstage, is pure amateur hour".{{Cite web |last=Last Night's Gig |date=July 25, 2007 |title=The White Stripes Triumphantly Bring Amateur Hour to the Garden |url=https://www.vulture.com/2007/07/the_white_stripes_triumphantly.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240605180228/https://www.vulture.com/2007/07/the_white_stripes_triumphantly.html |archive-date=June 5, 2024 |access-date=June 5, 2024 |website=Vulture |language=en}} That same year, Vulture released an article following the band's hiatus in September, where they poked fun at the drummer and jokingly listed "Ten Things That Probably Stressed Out Meg White".{{Cite web |last=Apropos of Nothing |date=September 12, 2007 |title=Ten Things That Probably Stressed Out Meg White |url=https://www.vulture.com/2007/09/ten_things_that_probably_stres.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240305071929/https://www.vulture.com/2007/09/ten_things_that_probably_stres.html |archive-date=March 5, 2024 |access-date=March 30, 2025 |website=Vulture |language=en}}
Additionally, there was mockery of the drummer. William Bowers of Pitchfork celebrated himself in a 2002 article for not talking "covetously" about White's body.{{Cite web |last=Bowers |first=William |date=2002 |title=The White Stripes: The White Stripes/De Stijl |url=https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/8650-the-white-stripesde-stijl/ |access-date=May 5, 2025 |website=Pitchfork |language=en-US}} In the 2003 film School of Rock, the character Freddy Jones (Kevin Clark) declares that White "can't drum!" The claim is refuted by bass player Katie (Rivkah Reyes) who says "At least she has rhythm."{{Cite web |last=Howell |first=Maddy |date=March 17, 2023 |title=The 'debate' around Meg White's drumming says everything about the enduring sexism in rock music |url=https://www.loudersound.com/features/the-debate-around-meg-whites-drumming-says-everything-about-the-enduring-sexism-in-rock-music |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240414195926/https://www.loudersound.com/features/the-debate-around-meg-whites-drumming-says-everything-about-the-enduring-sexism-in-rock-music |archive-date=April 14, 2024 |access-date=May 7, 2025 |website=Louder |language=en}} Negative reviews and comments were called "sexist" by Jack, who states that White's drumming is "best part of this band" and called her a "strong female presence in rock and roll".Talbott, Chris (May 31, 2014). "Jack White issues apology to Black Keys and others, explains comments that drew criticism". The Canadian Press.
= Retrospective analysis and legacy =
{{Multiple image
| image1 = FoosDublin210819-2 (48620472807) (cropped).jpg
| image2 = RiP2013 GreenDay Tre Cool 0002.jpg
| footer = White's style of drumming continues to be discussed. Musicians such as Dave Grohl (left) and Tré Cool (right) have praised White.
| total_width = 300
}}
White is considered a key figure in the garage rock revival of the 2000s, and has since been praised for her "primal" style.{{Cite web |last=Stegall |first=Tim |date=January 21, 2022 |title=The best punk drummers of the 2000s, from Travis Barker to Meg White |url=https://www.altpress.com/best-punk-drummers-2000s-travis-barker-meg-white/ |access-date=March 10, 2023 |website=Alternative Press |language=en}} She is one of the most discussed drummers in rock music, and her style continues to be evaluated after her retirement. Her strict maintenance of her privacy and few interviews has also been the subject of significant commentary;{{Cite web |last=Uitti |first=Jacob |date=December 29, 2022 |title=7 Rock Stars Who Walked Away Too Early—From Bill Wyman to Meg White |url=https://americansongwriter.com/7-rock-stars-who-walked-away-too-early-from-bill-wyman-to-meg-white/ |access-date=March 29, 2023 |website=American Songwriter |language=en-US}}{{Cite web |last=Yeniocak |first=Su |date=June 22, 2022 |title=Why Meg White Lives In Seclusion |url=https://rockcelebrities.net/why-meg-white-lives-in-seclusion/ |access-date=March 10, 2023 |website=Rock Celebrities |language=en-US |archive-date=March 10, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230310173814/https://rockcelebrities.net/why-meg-white-lives-in-seclusion/ |url-status=live }} as of 2023, she has not made any public appearances since 2009.{{Cite web |last=Giannini |first=Melissa |date=June 1, 2023 |title=Searching for Meg White |url=https://www.elle.com/culture/music/a43846386/meg-white-interview-2023/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240910022649/https://www.elle.com/culture/music/a43846386/meg-white-interview-2023/ |archive-date=September 10, 2024 |access-date=August 16, 2024 |website=ELLE |language=en-US}} On the enduring discussion of White's drumming, Chris Willman of Variety magazine observed that, in the aftermath of her departure from the music industry, White "seems to have been absorbed into rock orthodoxy as a great drummer by near-acclamation" and is more recognized compared to her active years. Of her public presence, Ben Sisario of The New York Times said she "has become one the great recluses of 21st-century pop".{{Cite news |last=Sisario |first=Ben |date=April 28, 2025 |title=Chubby Checker, Outkast and the White Stripes Will Join the Rock Hall |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2025/04/27/arts/music/rock-and-roll-hall-of-fame-chubby-checker-white-stripes.html |access-date=April 28, 2025 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331 |archive-date=April 28, 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250428004858/https://www.nytimes.com/2025/04/27/arts/music/rock-and-roll-hall-of-fame-chubby-checker-white-stripes.html |url-status=live }} Andy Greene of Rolling Stone observed White "was a reluctant star even in the early days of the White Stripes." He also believes that White likely has no interest in returning to the public eye, even for a potential White Stripes reunion, and emphasized that "Meg White doesn't owe us anything."{{Cite web |last=Greene |first=Andy |date=April 28, 2025 |title=Will Meg White Show Up at the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame? |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-features/meg-white-rock-hall-of-fame-1235325234/ |access-date=April 29, 2025 |website=Rolling Stone |language=en-US}}
Several musicians have praised White. Jack said: "People should write books about Meg White. To me she's like Hank Williams or Jimi Hendrix. They are one in a billion. One in a billion." Dave Grohl of Foo Fighters and previously Nirvana stated in an interview that White is "one of my favorite fucking drummers of all time. Like, nobody fucking plays the drums like that."{{Cite magazine |last=Hiatt |first=Brian |date=June 29, 2018 |title=Dave Grohl on the Foos' Tour, Lost Nirvana Reunion Footage |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-features/dave-grohl-on-the-foos-tour-classic-rock-retirements-and-lost-nirvana-reunion-footage-666832/ |access-date=March 17, 2023 |magazine=Rolling Stone |language=en-US |archive-date=March 17, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230317033516/https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-features/dave-grohl-on-the-foos-tour-classic-rock-retirements-and-lost-nirvana-reunion-footage-666832/ |url-status=live }}{{Cite web |last=Renshaw |first=David |date=January 28, 2013 |title=Dave Grohl raves about Meg White's drumming style |url=https://www.nme.com/news/music/dave-grohl-38-1258400 |access-date=March 10, 2023 |website=NME |language=en-GB |archive-date=March 10, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230310002318/https://www.nme.com/news/music/dave-grohl-38-1258400 |url-status=live }} 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".{{Cite web |date=March 18, 2023 |title=Rage Against The Machine's Tom Morello defends "untouchable" Meg White of the White Stripes |url=https://lambgoat.com/news/38392/rage-against-the-machines-tom-morello-defends-untouchable-meg-white-of-the-white-stripes/ |access-date=March 20, 2023 |website=lambgoat.com |language=en}}{{Cite web |last=Daly |first=Rhian |date=March 19, 2023 |title=Tom Morello calls Meg White one of rock'n'roll's "greatest drummers" |url=https://www.nme.com/news/music/tom-morello-calls-meg-white-one-of-rocknrolls-greatest-drummers-3416225 |access-date=March 20, 2023 |website=NME |language=en-GB}} Nandi Bushell cited White as one of her influences, and said: "I saw Meg playing the drums and thought she was the coolest person in the world. I still do." She wrote on Twitter that the White Stripes "moved me at 5 years old to want to play the drums and still move me today! My screams are for you Meg! You are and always will be my role model and hero!"{{Cite magazine |date=March 19, 2023 |title=Nandi Bushell Dedicates White Stripes Cover to 'Role Model' and 'Hero' Meg White |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/nandi-bushell-the-white-stripes-seven-nation-army-cover-meg-white-watch-1234699934/ |access-date=March 26, 2024 |magazine=Rolling Stone |archive-date=March 26, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240326080340/https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/nandi-bushell-the-white-stripes-seven-nation-army-cover-meg-white-watch-1234699934/ |url-status=live }}{{Cite magazine |date=March 20, 2023 |title=Nandi Bushell Screams, Bashes Her Way Through White Stripes' 'Seven Nation Army' in Tribute to Meg White |url=https://www.billboard.com/music/rock/nandi-bushell-tribute-meg-white-cover-white-stripes-seven-nation-army-1235289476/ |access-date=March 26, 2024 |magazine=Billboard |archive-date=March 26, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240326080340/https://www.billboard.com/music/rock/nandi-bushell-tribute-meg-white-cover-white-stripes-seven-nation-army-1235289476/ |url-status=live }} Tré Cool of Green Day called Meg White one of his favorite drummers.{{Cite AV media |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3ed0GA0o7PA%3Fsi%3D5FzVNvAOqOavqJdT |title=Tré Cool Answers Who the Greatest Drummer of All Time Is |date=January 17, 2024 |last=The Howard Stern Show |access-date=September 20, 2024 |via=YouTube}}
Musicians Tracey Thorn and Wanda Jackson have covered the song "In the Cold, Cold Night" as tributes.{{Cite web |last=Bartleet |first=Larry |date=2015-07-20 |title=Eight Unmissable Covers Of White Stripes Songs |url=https://www.nme.com/blogs/nme-blogs/eight-unmissable-covers-of-white-stripes-songs-8591 |access-date=2025-01-31 |website=NME |language=en-GB |archive-date=January 30, 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250130054549/https://www.nme.com/blogs/nme-blogs/eight-unmissable-covers-of-white-stripes-songs-8591 |url-status=live }}{{Cite magazine |date=November 12, 2013 |title=Wanda Jackson Covers the White Stripes - Song Premiere |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/wanda-jackson-covers-the-white-stripes-song-premiere-184250/ |access-date=January 18, 2024 |magazine=Rolling Stone |archive-date=January 18, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240118021824/https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/wanda-jackson-covers-the-white-stripes-song-premiere-184250/ |url-status=live }} Ray LaMontagne wrote and recorded a single named after her, featured on his album Gossip in the Grain (2008) and performed at the 2014 Santa Barbara Bowl.{{Cite web |last=Singh |first=Amrit |date=September 25, 2008 |title=New Ray LaMontagne – “Meg White” |url=https://www.stereogum.com/23811/new_ray_lamontagne_meg_white/music/ |access-date=March 12, 2025 |website=Stereogum |language=en}}{{Cite web |last=Drown |first=Michelle |date=2014-10-22 |title=Review: Ray LaMontagne at the Santa Barbara Bowl |url=https://www.independent.com/2014/10/21/review-ray-lamontagne-santa-barbara-bowl/ |access-date=2025-03-12 |website=Santa Barbara Independent |language=en-US |archive-date=October 12, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241012193301/https://www.independent.com/2014/10/21/review-ray-lamontagne-santa-barbara-bowl/ |url-status=live }}
In March 2023, National Review magazine published an article celebrating the 20 year anniversary of "Seven Nation Army".{{Cite web |last=McLaughlin |first=Dan |date=March 11, 2023 |title=The Song of the Century Turns 20 |url=https://www.nationalreview.com/corner/the-song-of-the-century-turns-20/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230314203743/https://www.nationalreview.com/corner/the-song-of-the-century-turns-20/ |archive-date=March 14, 2023 |access-date=March 15, 2023 |website=National Review |language=en-US}} In response to a tweet concerning the article on Twitter, journalist Lachlan Markay wrote: "The tragedy of the White Stripes is how great they would've been with a half decent drummer. […] I'm sorry Meg White was terrible and no band is better for having shitty percussion."{{Cite web |last=Willman |first=Chris |date=March 15, 2023 |title=Meg White's Drumming Chops Are the Hot Topic of the Day, and Yes, It's 2023 |url=https://variety.com/2023/music/news/meg-white-drummer-white-stripes-twitter-argument-1235554582/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230315015624/https://variety.com/2023/music/news/meg-white-drummer-white-stripes-twitter-argument-1235554582/ |archive-date=March 15, 2023 |access-date=March 15, 2023 |website=Variety |language=en-US}}{{Cite web |last=DiVita |first=Joe |date=March 14, 2023 |title=Twitter Comes After Ex-Political Reporter Who Dissed Meg White's 'Terrible' Drumming |url=https://loudwire.com/white-stripes-meg-white-drumming-dissed-twitter-reacts/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230315011118/https://loudwire.com/white-stripes-meg-white-drumming-dissed-twitter-reacts/ |archive-date=March 15, 2023 |access-date=March 15, 2023 |website=Loudwire |language=en}} The tweet went viral, and Jack, along with several musicians and critics, came to her defense.
- {{Cite web |date=March 14, 2023 |title=Twitter rallies to defend The White Stripes' Meg White from sexist slander |url=https://www.audacy.com/national/music/twitter-rallies-to-defend-the-white-stripes-meg-white-from-sexist-slander |access-date=March 15, 2023 |website=www.audacy.com |language=en |archive-date=March 14, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230314172804/https://www.audacy.com/national/music/twitter-rallies-to-defend-the-white-stripes-meg-white-from-sexist-slander |url-status=live }}
- {{Cite web |last=Roskopp |first=Jack |date=March 15, 2023 |title=In defense of Meg White, the iconic (and talented) drummer of the White Stripes |url=https://www.clickondetroit.com/entertainment/2023/03/15/in-defense-of-meg-white-the-iconic-and-talented-drummer-of-the-white-stripes/ |access-date=March 16, 2023 |website=WDIV |language=en }}
- {{Cite web |date=March 16, 2023 |title=Jack White Posts Tribute to Meg White as World Considers the Viral and Bad White Stripes Take |url=https://pitchfork.com/news/jack-white-posts-tribute-to-meg-white-as-world-considers-the-viral-and-bad-white-stripes-take/ |access-date=March 16, 2023 |website=Pitchfork |language=en-US }}
- {{Cite web |date=March 15, 2023 |title=Karen Elson leads support for Meg White after White Stripes criticism |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/music/news/meg-white-drummer-criticism-karen-elson-b2301104.html |access-date=March 15, 2023 |website=The Independent |language=en |archive-date=March 15, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230315072015/https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/music/news/meg-white-drummer-criticism-karen-elson-b2301104.html |url-status=live }}
- {{Cite web |last=Singh |first=Surej |date=March 15, 2023 |title=Karen Elson defends Meg White: "Keep my ex-husband's ex-wife name out your mouth" |url=https://www.nme.com/news/music/karen-elson-defends-meg-white-white-stripes-3413729 |access-date=March 15, 2023 |website=NME |language=en-GB |archive-date=March 15, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230315172749/https://www.nme.com/news/music/karen-elson-defends-meg-white-white-stripes-3413729 |url-status=live }}
- {{Cite web |last=Richards |first=Will |date=March 14, 2023 |title=Questlove joins social media debate defending Meg White's drumming ability |url=https://www.nme.com/news/music/questlove-joins-social-media-debate-defending-meg-whites-drumming-ability-3413558 |access-date=March 15, 2023 |website=NME |language=en-GB |archive-date=March 15, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230315021008/https://www.nme.com/news/music/questlove-joins-social-media-debate-defending-meg-whites-drumming-ability-3413558 |url-status=live }}
- {{Cite news |last=Snapes |first=Laura |date=March 16, 2023 |title=Jack White defends Meg White's drumming with poem addressing critics |url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/2023/mar/16/jack-white-defends-meg-whites-drumming-with-poem-addressing-critics |access-date=March 16, 2023 |work=The Guardian |language=en-GB |issn=0261-3077 }}
- {{Cite web |date=March 16, 2023 |title=Jack White pens poetic ode to Meg White after White Stripes drummer was maligned |url=https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/music/story/2023-03-16/meg-white-drummer-journalist-tweet-white-stripes-jack-white |access-date=March 16, 2023 |website=Los Angeles Times |language=en-US |archive-date=March 16, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230316180952/https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/music/story/2023-03-16/meg-white-drummer-journalist-tweet-white-stripes-jack-white |url-status=live}} Markay later deleted his comments,{{Cite web |last=Wilkes |first=Emma |date=March 15, 2023 |title=Journalist apologises for calling Meg White "terrible" after backlash |url=https://www.nme.com/news/music/journalist-apologises-for-calling-meg-white-terrible-after-backlash-3414120 |access-date=March 16, 2023 |website=NME |language=en-GB}} calling it "an over-the-top take" and apologizing. As a result, White trended that month.{{Cite magazine |last=Kaufman |first=Gil |date=March 16, 2023 |title=Jack White Posts Loving Poem Honoring Former White Stripes Drummer Meg White, Calling out 'Demons, Cowards and Vampires' |url=https://www.billboard.com/music/rock/jack-white-poem-tribute-white-stripes-drummer-meg-white-controversy-tweet-1235287258/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230317000954/https://www.billboard.com/music/rock/jack-white-poem-tribute-white-stripes-drummer-meg-white-controversy-tweet-1235287258/ |archive-date=March 17, 2023 |access-date=March 17, 2023 |magazine=Billboard}} White did not respond to the controversy.
Robin Murray of Clash titled her "One of Rock's Greatest Drummers" in 2023.{{Cite web |last1=Murray |first1=Robin |date=March 15, 2023 |title=Meg White Is One Of Rock's Great Drummers {{!}} Features |url=https://www.clashmusic.com/features/meg-white-is-one-of-rocks-great-drummers/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230315100944/https://www.clashmusic.com/features/meg-white-is-one-of-rocks-great-drummers/ |archive-date=March 15, 2023 |access-date=March 16, 2023 |website=Clash |language=en-GB}} In a 2024 Euronews article, Jonny Walfisz likened White to Ringo Starr of the Beatles, calling her a "sheer genius of a drummer" who, like Starr, had a deceptively simple style which showed creativity through minimalism to best support each song.{{Cite web |last=Walfisz |first=Jonny |date=April 4, 2024 |title=World Drummer's Day: The five types of drummers who changed the world |url=https://www.euronews.com/culture/2024/04/04/world-drummers-day-the-five-types-of-drummers-who-changed-the-world |access-date=April 4, 2024 |website=Euronews |language=en}} Erica Banas at WRAT called her "Rock's Favorite Recluse" in 2024, quipping that "No other drummer can rattle a rearview mirror quite like Meg White".{{Cite web |last=Banas |first=Erica |date=June 14, 2024 |title=Meg White: Rock's Favorite Recluse Who's Impossible to Ignore |url=https://wrat.com/2024/06/14/meg-white-rock-recluse-impossible-ignore/ |access-date=October 15, 2024 |website=WRAT}} Also in 2024, writers at Consequence of Sound concluded her "minimalistic style was the perfect counter to Jack's shredding, a primal dynamic that gave their tunes that definitive garage stomp. [...] Meg provided the feel." In 2025, while profiling the White Stripes, the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame wrote, "Meg's drumming is raw, powerful, and perfectly suited to the band’s sound – embracing a primal, minimalist approach that gives the music its pulse and urgency, her pounding beats are the backbone of the band’s signature style."{{Cite web |title=The White Stripes |url=https://rockhall.com/artists/the-white-stripes/ |access-date=March 12, 2025 |website=Rock & Roll Hall of Fame |language=en-US |archive-date=February 13, 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250213195817/https://rockhall.com/artists/the-white-stripes/ |url-status=live }}
Personal life
White and Jack White dated in the mid-1990s, and were married on September 21, 1996,{{sfn|Handyside|2004|p=32}} with Jack taking her last name. They divorced on March 24, 2000. In May 2009, she married guitarist Jackson Smith in a small ceremony in Jack White's backyard in Nashville, Tennessee. Jackson is the son of musicians Patti Smith and Fred "Sonic" Smith. They divorced in July 2013.{{cite news |date=May 26, 2009 |title=Meg White and Jackson Smith wed in Nashville |url=http://seattletimes.com/html/entertainment/2009264040_apusmusicmegwhite.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141020010717/http://seattletimes.com/html/entertainment/2009264040_apusmusicmegwhite.html |archive-date=October 20, 2014 |access-date=April 16, 2019 |work=The Seattle Times |publisher=seattletimes.com}}{{cite court|litigants=Smith vs White|opinion=2013-805938-DO|court=Mich. 6th Cir.|date=2013|url=https://apps.oakgov.com/crts0004/main|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140425084903/http://apps.oakgov.com/crts0004/main|url-status=dead}} Note: User-search required. Since 2014, White has been residing in Detroit.{{Cite web |date=May 23, 2014 |title=Jack White says he 'almost never' talks to Meg White, says she's 'always been a hermit' |url=http://www.mlive.com/entertainment/detroit/index.ssf/2014/05/jack_white_says_he_almost_neve.html |access-date=January 16, 2016 |website=MLive.com |archive-date=February 23, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160223214120/http://www.mlive.com/entertainment/detroit/index.ssf/2014/05/jack_white_says_he_almost_neve.html |url-status=live }} White loves peppermint, and it inspired many of the White Stripes' artistic schemes.{{cite episode |title=Profile: Band The White Stripes |series=Morning Edition |last=Stamberg |first=Susan |network=NPR |date=June 12, 2002}}{{Cite web |date=August 30, 2009 |title=THE WHITE STRIPES |url=http://www.whitestripes.net/faq.php#thename |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090830022122/http://www.whitestripes.net/faq.php#thename |archive-date=August 30, 2009 |access-date=January 18, 2024}}
White suffers from acute anxiety, and has described herself as "very shy". She told Rolling Stone in 2005 that "the more you talk, the fewer people listen".{{Cite magazine |last=Fricke |first=David |date=September 8, 2005 |title=The White Stripes: Jack White Comes Clean |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/the-mysterious-case-of-the-white-stripes-75345/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231217001242/https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/the-mysterious-case-of-the-white-stripes-75345/ |archive-date=December 17, 2023 |access-date=January 28, 2024 |magazine=Rolling Stone |language=en-US}} She said in 2006 that she "never really cared about all the things that other people cared about, you know? Like, people recognizing me on the street never interested me. I've always been kind of suspicious of the world, anyway, so it's pretty easy for me to live in my own little world."{{Cite web |date=May 12, 2006 |title=Interview: The White Stripes: getting to know the most interesting band in music today - Interview |url=http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1285/is_4_33/ai_100572738/pg_4 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060512061833/http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1285/is_4_33/ai_100572738/pg_4 |archive-date=May 12, 2006 |access-date=April 12, 2024}} She told Nylon that being recognized "is like if your boss came every morning and tapped you on the head to wake you up, it's like, not now."{{Cite web |last=Long |first=April |date=May 23, 2014 |title=Flashback Friday: The White Stripes |url=https://www.nylon.com/articles/nylon-cover-the-white-stripes |access-date=April 19, 2025 |website=Nylon |language=en |archive-date=December 12, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241212162341/https://www.nylon.com/articles/nylon-cover-the-white-stripes |url-status=live }} Jack said in an interview with MOJO that "For her to sit down behind the drum kit is insane. But then to get on stage and sing into a microphone? Are you kidding me? It was unbelievable, a miracle, a blessing from above, just a beautiful, beautiful thing."
In 2007, a sex tape falsely claiming to star White began to circulate the internet and some media tabloids.{{Cite web |last=NME |date=September 24, 2007 |title=Tabloid Hell: 'Meg White' sex tape furore |url=https://www.nme.com/news/music/tabloid-hell-383-1341560 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230314214400/https://www.nme.com/news/music/tabloid-hell-383-1341560 |archive-date=March 14, 2023 |access-date=May 23, 2025 |website=NME |language=en-GB}} A spokesperson of XL confirmed it was "definitely not Meg." They additionally stated, "We as a label believe some people have a very twisted sense of humour and this prank is in particularly bad taste".{{Cite web |last=NME |date=September 25, 2007 |title='Meg White' sex tape – 'it's definitely not the White Stripe' |url=https://www.nme.com/news/music/the-white-stripes-173-1341313 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220929175100/https://www.nme.com/news/music/the-white-stripes-173-1341313 |archive-date=September 29, 2022 |access-date=May 23, 2025 |website=NME |language=en-GB}}
During the 2016 United States presidential election, White made a joint statement with Jack criticizing Donald Trump after "Seven Nation Army" appeared in his campaign without their consent.{{Cite web |last=Krieg |first=Gregory |date=October 6, 2016 |title=The White Stripes give Trump an Icky Thump {{!}} CNN Politics |url=https://www.cnn.com/2016/10/06/politics/donald-trump-white-stripes-icky-thump/index.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240912085712/https://www.cnn.com/2016/10/06/politics/donald-trump-white-stripes-icky-thump/index.html |archive-date=September 12, 2024 |access-date=October 1, 2024 |website=CNN |language=en}} After the Trump campaign used the song again in the 2024 United States presidential election, she and Jack filed a copyright infringement lawsuit in September 2024.{{Cite magazine |last=Levin |first=Bess |date=August 30, 2024 |title=You Can Add ABBA and the White Stripes to the Long List of Musical Acts Who Want Nothing to Do With Donald Trump |url=https://www.vanityfair.com/news/story/abba-and-the-white-stripes-want-nothing-to-do-with-donald-trump |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240909204604/https://www.vanityfair.com/news/story/abba-and-the-white-stripes-want-nothing-to-do-with-donald-trump |archive-date=September 9, 2024 |access-date=September 9, 2024 |magazine=Vanity Fair |language=en-US}}{{Cite web |last=Specter |first=Emma |date=September 10, 2024 |title=Trump Has Made a Powerful New Legal Enemy, and It's…the White Stripes? |url=https://www.vogue.com/article/trump-white-stripes-lawsuit |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240910210653/https://www.vogue.com/article/trump-white-stripes-lawsuit |archive-date=September 10, 2024 |access-date=September 11, 2024 |website=Vogue |language=en-US}} The lawsuit was dropped in November 2024.{{Cite web |last=Snapes |first=Laura |date=November 12, 2024 |title=The White Stripes drop lawsuit against Trump campaign for unauthorised Seven Nation Army use |url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/2024/nov/12/the-white-stripes-drop-lawsuit-against-trump-campaign-for-unauthorised-seven-nation-army-use |access-date=December 3, 2024 |website=The Guardian}}
Achievements
{{See also|List of awards and nominations received by the White Stripes
}}
With the White Stripes, White sold over 5 million albums.{{cite web |last=Center |first=Marc |date=June 13, 2009 |title=Weather Report |url=https://www.americanradiohistory.com/Archive-Billboard/00s/2009/BB-2009-06-13.pdf |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211022233859/https://worldradiohistory.com/Archive-All-Music/Billboard/00s/2009/BB-2009-06-13.pdf |archive-date=October 22, 2021 |access-date=May 19, 2020 |publisher=Billboard |page=22 |via=American Radio History |volume=42 |issue=27}} She received several accolades with the band, which includes winning one Brit Award from six nominations and winning six Grammy Awards from eleven nominations; as a member of the White Stripes, she was nominated for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2023 and will be inducted in 2025.{{Cite magazine |last=Unterberger |first=Andrew |date=2023-05-03 |title=Snubs & Surprises in the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame's 2023 Inductions |url=https://www.billboard.com/music/awards/rock-and-roll-hall-of-fame-snubs-surprises-2023-1235320703/ |access-date=2025-01-22 |magazine=Billboard |language=en-US}}{{Cite web |last=Goehrke |first=Risa |date=April 28, 2025 |title=2025 Inductees Announced |url=https://rockhall.com/2025-inductees/ |access-date=April 28, 2025 |website=Rock & Roll Hall of Fame |language=en-US |archive-date=April 28, 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250428181603/https://rockhall.com/2025-inductees/ |url-status=live }}
Discography
With the White Stripes
{{Main|The White Stripes discography}}
- The White Stripes (1999)
- De Stijl (2000)
- White Blood Cells (2001)
- Elephant (2003)
- Get Behind Me Satan (2005)
- Icky Thump (2007)
Filmography
= Film =
| class="wikitable plainrowheaders sortable"
! scope="col" | Year ! scope="col" | Title ! scope="col"| Role ! scope="col"| Notes ! scope="col"| {{Ref.}} |
| 2003
! scope="row"|Coffee and Cigarettes | rowspan="5" |Herself |Segment: "Jack Shows Meg His Tesla Coil" |
| 2004
! scope="row"|Under Blackpool Lights |Direct-to-video film |
| 2005
! scope="row"|The Fearless Freaks | rowspan="2" |Documentary | style="text-align:center;" |{{Cite web |last=Adams |first=David |date=June 2, 2005 |title=The Flaming Lips: The Fearless Freaks |url=https://www.ign.com/articles/2005/06/02/the-flaming-lips-the-fearless-freaks |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240323055703/https://www.ign.com/articles/2005/06/02/the-flaming-lips-the-fearless-freaks |archive-date=March 23, 2024 |access-date=March 23, 2024 |website=IGN |language=en}} |
| 2008
! scope="row"|It Might Get Loud |
| 2009
! scope="row"|Under Great White Northern Lights |
= Television =
= Music videos =
{{See also|The White Stripes discography#Music videos}}
- "Cha Cha Twist" (2004), by The Detroit Cobras
References
{{Reflist}}
=Works cited=
- {{cite book | last =Handyside | first =Chris | title =Fell in Love with a Band: The Story of The White Stripes | publisher =St. Martin's Griffin | date =2004 | isbn =978-0312336189 | url-access =registration |url=https://archive.org/details/fellinlovewithba00hand }}
Further reading
- {{cite book|last=Sullivan|first=Denise|date=2004|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=UsmD-f2OmToC&pg=PP5|title=The White Stripes: Sweethearts of the Blues|publisher=Backbeat Books|ISBN=0-87930-805-2}}
External links
{{Wikiquote}}
- [https://web.archive.org/web/20140814060503/http://www.whitestripes.com/ Official site of the White Stripes]
- {{Discogs artist|Meg White}}
- {{IMDb name|1353108}}
{{The White Stripes}}
{{2025 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame|state=collapsed}}
{{Jack White}}
{{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:White, Meg}}
Category:20th-century American drummers
Category:20th-century American women musicians
Category:21st-century American drummers
Category:21st-century American women musicians
Category:American photographers
Category:American rock drummers
Category:American women drummers
Category:Drummers from Detroit