Jack White responds to “cowboy” Charley Crockett’s “accusations”, country star says he’s “lost a lot of respect” for him
Country singer Charley Crockett has said he "lost a lot of respect" for Jack White after the former White Stripes frontman invited LA rock duo Twin Temple to open for him, weeks after Crockett dropped the band from his own tour over what he called their "Satanic imagery". Crockett accused White of using the row to sell tickets and questioned why he hadn't been politically outspoken during his White Stripes days two decades ago, while White hit back on Instagram, dismissing the criticism and posting the lyrics to a 1984 novelty rap song in response.
Crockett removed Twin Temple from his tour last month, prompting the band to criticise him publicly and make their US late-night debut on The Daily Show; White then offered them a support slot at his Hollywood Palladium show on 29 September. In a since-deleted Instagram post, Crockett denied dropping the duo over Satanic imagery, instead blaming unworkable staging demands and content he deemed unsuitable for an all-ages audience, and said he had paid them in full despite accusing them of stage-managing the controversy for publicity.
- Charley Crockett says he's lost respect for Jack White.
- Row follows White booking Twin Temple after Crockett dropped them.
- White responded on Instagram, quoting a 1984 novelty rap song.
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Charley Crockett and Jack White are both prominent figures in American roots music, with Crockett known for his old-school country and blues style and White best known as the former frontman of the White Stripes. The dispute began when Crockett removed the Los Angeles rock duo Twin Temple from his own tour, saying their imagery was unsuitable, a move the band publicly criticised. White then invited Twin Temple to open for him at a show in Los Angeles, which Crockett took as a provocation.
The row has since played out publicly through social media posts and interviews, with both musicians giving differing accounts of why Twin Temple were dropped and accusing each other of using the dispute for attention. It matters because it touches on broader debates within the country and rock music scenes about artistic freedom, censorship and what is deemed acceptable content for wider audiences, drawing in fans and commentators on both sides.
Both sides, in good faith
The strongest fair case each way — we don't pick a winner.
The case for
Those sympathetic to Jack White and Twin Temple argue that a headline tour deserves the freedom to book acts on musical merit without policing their imagery or beliefs, and that dropping a band over religious symbolism amounts to a narrow, exclusionary standard dressed up as family-friendly caution. They see White's gesture as solidarity with performers who lost a paid slot and a public platform, and view his pointed questioning of Crockett's own past silence on political and social issues as a fair challenge to selective moral posturing rather than mere provocation.
The case against
Those sympathetic to Charley Crockett argue that any tour headliner has the right and responsibility to curate a bill that suits his audience, brand and staging logistics, particularly when shows are pitched as suitable for families, and that this is an ordinary business judgement rather than censorship. They note Crockett says he paid Twin Temple in full and has offered a fuller account of staging demands, and see his frustration with White as a reasonable reaction to being publicly cast as intolerant by a rival artist who, in his view, is capitalising on the controversy to sell tickets rather than engaging with the substance of his concerns.