Courtney Love Thinks Taylor Swift Is ‘Not Important’ & Lana Del Rey Should ‘Take Seven Years Off’

In a candid new interview, Courtney Love revealed how she really feels about the female megastars of today – and she’s not a fan.

The icon of the alternative scene opened up in a promotional appearance for her new BBC radio show, Courtney Love’s Women. Speaking with Dylan Jones for The Standard, she spoke on many women during the interview, but certain quotes seem to stick out. 

“Taylor [Swift] is not important,” the lead vocalist of Hole opined at one point. “She might be a safe space for girls, and she’s probably the Madonna of now, but she’s not interesting as an artist.”

Also mentioning Swift’s Snow On The Beach collaborator and friend, Lana Del Rey, Love said, “I haven’t liked Lana since she covered a John Denver song, and I think she should really take seven years off.” But the bad taste in Love’s mouth hasn’t always been sour when it comes to the Summertime Sadness singer: “Up until Take Me Home Country Roads I thought she was great. When I was recording my new album, I had to stop listening to her as she was influencing me too much.”

Del Rey and Swift weren’t the only victims in Love’s tirade. “It’s great that there are so many successful women in the music industry, but lots of them are becoming a cliché. Now, every successful woman is cloned, so there is just too much music. They’re all the same,” she said.

Her example? Beyonce’s Cowboy Carter. “I mean, I like the idea of Beyoncé doing a country record because it’s about Black women going into spaces where previously only white women have been allowed, not that I like it much,” she said. “As a concept, I love it. I just don’t like her music.”

Last but not least on the chopping block was Madonna. Love kept it short and sweet: “I don’t like her and she doesn’t like me.” Madonna and Love have been quite public in their dislike of each other – who could forget Love hurling compact mirrors at Madonna during an MTV interview?

Love’s conversation with Jones wasn’t all negative. In fact, her new BBC show is designed to uplift the women that the industry has mistreated. “With my BBC show I’m trying to redeem some of the women who have been treated so badly by the record industry. That’s all,” she said. “Women are still marginalised in this industry, even though they’re more successful.”

This isn’t the first time Love has made a statement like this. Last year she called out the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame for their lack of female inductees. The uncensored chat with Jones marks the 30 year anniversary of Love’s late husband and Nirvana frontman Kurt Cobain.