A Man of Many Tastes: Why Billy Corgan Defended Taylor Swift and ‘Tortured Poets Department’

On the surface, people not too familiar with Billy Corgan would assume that he is completely against over-serialized pop music. Well, that assumption is one of a blanket statement, and is not the case. Matter of fact, to make such a statement about any musician is a blanket statement, as the most talented and well-versed musicians typically have diverse musical tastes that help them create the best possible music. With all that in mind, it shouldn’t surprise you that Billy Corgan once stood up for one of the greatest pop stars of all time, Taylor Swift.

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Again, at face value, Taylor Swift and Billy Corgan don’t seemingly have too much in common in regard to their music and public personality. Despite this fact, Corgan still admires Taylor Swift’s nearly unprecedented success, and consequently, he once defended her when people were upset about the length of her album, The Tortured Poets Department: The Anthology.

Why Billy Corgan Defended Taylor Swift and Her 31-Track Album

In 2024, Taylor Swift released the highly acclaimed yet fairly controversial The Tortured Poets Department: The Anthology. The reason for its controversy was primarily due to the length of the album, which was a double-sided album with 31 total songs. Contrary to the masses, Billy Corgan supported Swift’s lengthy album.

Corgan is no stranger to artistic ambition, as he has always pushed boundaries in nearly every way, shape, or form. That being so, it’s not too surprising that Corgan defended Swift’s long album. Specifically, in an interview with The Irish Times, Corgan stated, “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,” added Corgan.

Comparing the situation to his own experience, he continued, “People complained about the length of my last album, Atum. I thought, Well, just go make your own playlist. Just listen to the record one time – rag over the six or 10 songs you like and make your own record. Why is this such a strange concept?”

While it is unclear what Corgan thought of the album itself, he completely understood her goal. Even though Corgan and Swift have little to nothing in common in regards to their music, they do have one thing, and likely more things that link them: creative ambition.

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