John Lydon Wants To Collaborate With Taylor Swift After Claiming She Was “Incredibly Dull”

While performing with Sex Pistols over the years, John Lydon eventually turned his attention to his own punk band Public Image Ltd. Back in August 2023, the group released their 11th studio album with End of World. Looking at some of Lydon’s most famous songs, they included “Death Disco” and “Rise.” Although continuing to explore a career in music, Lydon recently shared his interest in collaborating with Taylor Swift. Given her stardom, countless singers would do anything to land in the studio with the star. But for Lydon, his statement was a little confusing as he once criticized Swift and labeled her “Incredibly dull.” 

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Sitting down for an interview with The Mirror, Lydon took a moment to praise Swift for the amount of success she accumulated in the music industry. Completely taking over the charts and airwaves, Lydon said, “Those that do that kind of music, like Taylor, they do it very well. She deserves a go at me. Imagine that duet?”

Again, Lydon wanting to work with Swift might not sound confusing, but back in February, the singer had an entirely different take. Speaking with NME at the time, he said, “She’s incredibly dull. There’s a whole history of that kind of singer in America: the pop teenage trivia thing. What she’s grown into is too elaborate and she’s trapped by not meaning to annoy her fanbase – oh f**k off!”

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Not The Only Artist John Lydon Criticized

Lydon didn’t stop there with his rant as he warned that Swift would eventually end up in Las Vegas. “No really, it’s just daft. She’s got no place to go, so it’s gone into swishy ballroom-gown vibe. She’s going to be another one of those that ends up in Vegas, because that’s the only place left and that’s no future at all, is it?”

While Lydon took aim at Swift, the “Bad Blood” singer shouldn’t take it personally as he also criticized Lady Gaga. “Lady Gaga was a massively layered and textured presentation – very Bowie era and pop music at its finest. But what she’s turned into is Bizarro World. She’s acting in films, and I don’t like her as a human being. I don’t think she projects anything healthy. I don’t feel any soul.”

Not remotely afraid to share his brutally honest opinion, Lydon’s chances of working with Swift might not be that great. 

(Photo by Jim Dyson/Getty Images)