The mystery of where Meg White went isn’t much of one. Once the drummer for the rock-saving two-piece powerhouse The White Stripes, White faded into anonymity after the band broke up in 2011. She hasn’t been photographed in 17 years, as her bandmate, Jack White, went on to become the elder statesman of classic blues rock, getting in fights with the president and country stars to his heart’s content. Why did White escape the constant criticism from listeners who don’t appreciate her minimalist drumming? Probably because of shit like this: The Daily Mail reportedly stalked and published photographs of a woman it believed to be Meg White, only to quietly remove the photos from its website when it learned otherwise.
Per The Guardian, The Daily Mail “followed and photographed” a friend of White’s and then published more than two dozen images of this black-haired woman getting out of a car and talking to people at a restaurant. As if to prove the tabloid’s journalistic rigor, when the paper approached the woman for confirmation, she laughed and denied being the reclusive rocker. But that didn’t stop reporter Joe Hutchinson from taking her “thank you” as confirmation, and on August 6, it published the photos, which were taken down last week.
While incidents like this make it easy to understand why White receded from public life 17 years ago, she did make a statement at this year’s Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame induction ceremony through her former bandmate and husband. “She said, ‘Do you remember, Jack? We used to walk around, and animals, for some reason, would stare at us. They would stop and stare at us for some reason. Even at the Detroit Zoo, an elephant did the exact same thing one time.’ She just wanted me to tell you that.”
Today, an anonymous music label executive, who is a close friend of White, confirms to The Guardian, “Neither Meg nor the friend that was pictured had any idea they were being stalked and, if they had, they for sure would not have voluntarily chosen to be featured in anything having to do with The Daily Mail […] I can also assure you that Meg is well and is living the private life she chooses and deserves in Detroit.”
To paraphrase Cara Cunningham, leave Meg alone.
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