TORONTO – Musician Jack White penned an open letter defending portions of a “leaked” concert rider that included a venue-wide banana ban and a recipe for homemade guacamole.
Earlier this month, students at the University of Oklahoma obtained the former White Stripes singer’s concert demands prior to his upcoming show at the campus.
Among the demands was a bowl of “fresh homemade guacamole,” with a specific recipe included in the list.
“First off, this is none of your business, but I have no specific demands in my dressing room,” White wrote on his website. “I take with me what I need, and that ain’t much. Anything on the rider is for the band and the crew.”
White claims the demand for chunky guacamole was an inside joke.
“This ‘guacamole recipe’ is my hilarious tour manager’s inside joke with the local promoters, it’s his recipe, not mine,” White said. “It’s just something to break up the boredom, seeing who can make it best.”
The 39-year-old also explained the reasoning behind a total ban on bananas at the venue.
“Did it occur to anyone someone on the tour might have an allergy to them? no? hmmm,” he wrote. “One day some fantasy journalist out there will call someone in the biz and actually have a rider explained to them.”
White also called out the student journalists at the university saying he was disappointed, while offering forgiveness.
“I forgive them, they’re young and have learned their lesson about truth and ethics hopefully,” White said.
The musician said he believes in freedom of the press and the right to free information but “never in my 20 years of playing shows has my contract and tour rider been published.”
Why?
Because of “a hundred articles about bananas, free speech, and guacamole.”
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