A recent, since-deleted Daily Mail article attempting to track down former White Stripes drummer Meg White ended up misidentifying and stalking the wrong person, reigniting discussion about why the public remains so fixated on the reclusive musician. Since the band's 2011 split, Jack White has pursued a prominent solo career while Meg has deliberately withdrawn from public life, declining interviews and skipping the band's 2025 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction, a choice the Guardian frames as an act of quiet self-determination rather than mystery to be solved.

The piece traces Meg's uneasy relationship with fame during the band's active years, including her self-described shyness, 2007 tour cancellations linked to acute anxiety, and years of sexist criticism of her drumming ability from outlets such as Pitchfork and online forums, jabs that persisted long after the band stopped recording. It counters this narrative by highlighting her essential musical contribution, quoting Jack White's own praise of her playing and pointing to tracks like The Hardest Button to Button, Fell in Love with a Girl and Icky Thump as evidence of her distinctive, propulsive style as one half of a duo that never needed additional musicians.