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Daily Mirror
Daily Mirror
Entertainment
Courtney Pochin

'I'm sick of men discrediting Taylor Swift - she's one of the best songwriters out there'

I've said it before and I'll say it again (a little louder this time) - Taylor Swift is a genius.

Anyone who knows me will know I'm rather biased as a HUGE fan of Miss Swift, but that doesn't mean it's not true.

You need only look at the All Too Well singer's career to date to see just how clever and talented she is - and she achieved it all thanks to the songs she wrote on her bedroom floor.

Yes, she wrote the songs. She writes all her songs - sometimes with a little help from her friends.

But if you went online yesterday and read the comments Blur frontman Damon Albarn made about her during a recent interview, you might have been left questioning Swift's songwriting abilities.

Taylor hit back at Damon's comments (@taylorswift13/Twitter)

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Speaking to the LA Times, Albarn is quoted as telling journalist Mikael Wood that Swift "doesn't write her own songs".

Wood replies: "Of course she does. Co-writes some of them."

"That doesn’t count," claimed Albarn. "I know what co-writing is. Co-writing is very different to writing. I’m not hating on anybody, I’m just saying there’s a big difference between a songwriter and a songwriter who co-writes."

As word spread about these comments, Swift herself took to Twitter to share how "damaging" Albarn's words were.

She posted: "@DamonAlbarn I was such a big fan of yours until I saw this. I write ALL of my own songs. Your hot take is completely false and SO damaging. You don't have to like my songs but it's really f***ed up to try and discredit my writing. WOW."

Damon Albarn claimed Taylor Swift 'doesn't write her own songs' (Getty Images)

Albarn has since apologised to Swift on social media, claiming his conversation about songwriting was "reduced to clickbait".

But sadly this is just the latest in a string of incidents in which a man has attempted to discredit the 32-year-old's talents and quite frankly I'm sick of it.

We've famously seen Kanye West literally stealing her mic at the 2009 MTV VMA awards to announce that Beyonce had "one of the best videos of all time" in response to Swift winning Best Female Video for You Belong With Me.

In 2016 he also went on to claim in one of his songs that he "made that b**ch famous", which in turn saw so much hate directed at Swift that she felt she had to hide herself away from the world for an entire year.

And if that weren't enough, then came the devastation of Scott Borchetta’s Big Machine label selling her life's work to Scooter Braun out from under her, against her wishes in 2019 and the attempt to stop her performing her own songs at the AMAs.

Taylor Swift is no stranger to speaking out about how she is treated differently from her male counterparts in the music industry.

She notably penned an entire song about it on her seventh album, Lover, called 'The Man'. You should go watch the video if you haven't already - it's written, directed and owned by Taylor Swift.

She's also no stranger to criticism in regards to her songwriting.

Following the release of her first two albums, Taylor Swift and Fearless, which featured several co-written songs, she penned the entirety of her third album, Speak Now, all by herself to prove naysayers wrong.

Each time Swift takes a hit, she comes back stronger than a 90s trend- a phoenix rising from the ashes of her reputation, taking back ownership of her music by re-recording her old albums and continuously writing the most brilliant lyrics that stab you right in the feels no matter how many times you hear them.

It's amazing to watch her stand up for herself in this way - but the sad truth is that she shouldn't have to fight so hard in the first place.

She should be able to enjoy her success without constantly having to prove that she deserves it. She's one of the best songwriters out there and she's more than earned her crown.

And if Damon Albarn and others haven't figured that out yet, then they haven't been paying close enough attention.

Do you agree? Let us know in the comments below.

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