Jack White Responds After Angry Country Star Calls Him Out

Jack White has found a unique way to respond to country star Charley Crockett after the musician ripped White for his support of Twin Temple after Crockett dropped them from two shows reportedly over their use of Satanic imagery in their shows.

Crockett had shut down his socials for a period when the controversy initially arose, but returned to Instagram long enough to address his thoughts on the media coverage and how things played out before deleting the post not long after putting it up.

In his comments he accused the media and bystander artists of "dog whistling" about religious and creative freedom before singling out Jack White for his support of Twin Temple and inviting them to open a show for him after the incident took place.

What Did Jack White Say in Response to Charley Crockett?

In an Instagram post, the singer initially shared, "I never said nothing about this young buck before but since he’s trying to drag me into this here rodeo again, here's my official response to Cowboy Charley’s accusations."

He then followed with the entire lyrics to the 1984 Shawn Brown novelty rap song, "Rappin' Duke," in which the rapper used a John Wayne-style delivery to impersonate legendary Western movie star. The song initially appeared on Brown's 1985 album, ¿Que Pasa?, and the success of the track led to a label deal with Tommy Boy records and opening spots for Bobby Brown and Stevie Wonder on tour.

The lyrics are as follows and a video can be seen of the original track below the Instagram post:

So you think you're bad, with your rap
Well I'll tell ya pilgrim I started the crap
When you were in diapers and wetting the sheets
I was at the Ponderosa rapping to the beat
Da haahh, da haahh
Da ha-hahh ha-hahh haahh
Sure I rustled some cattle and tended the sheep
But my main concern was rapping to the beat
I don't bother nobody I'm a real nice guy, kinda
laid back like a, dead fly
Da haahh, da haahh
Da ha-hahh ha-hahh haahh
I'm talkin, here and now
Later for the cattle and rustlin the cow
If I had a chance to do a repeat
You can bet your sweet dippy I'd be rappin to the beat
Da haahh, da haahh
Da ha-hahh ha-hahh haahh
Que pasa amigos? Not a *pasa* I see
Two hundred punks well what ya gonna do?
I got two six shooters that'll see me through
That's, twelve dead...
and a hundred and eighty-eight pallbearers
Da haahh, da haahh
Da ha-hahh ha-hahh haahh
What I do on your grave won't pass for flowers either
Now Kurtis Blow, Run-D.M.C.
You haven't heard of rap, til ya heard it from me
I'm the baddest rapper in history
And there'll be no more, after me
Da haahh, da haahh
Da ha-hahh ha-hahh haahh
Meanwhile, back at the ranch
Santa Barbera that is
Swimmin pools, and movie stars
Well the first thing ya know ol' Ron's the President
The kinfolk said, "Ron move away from there"
Said, "In The White House is where you wanna be"
So he loaded up the Lincoln and he moved to D.C.
Washington, that is
Politicians taking a sip
Foreign dignitaries taking a trip
High tax and plenty Cadillacs
Da haahh, da haahh
Da ha-hahh ha-hahh haahh
Now ya see me in my movies, doin my thing
But deep in my heart, I've wanted to sing
"Wayyyy dowwwn, upon the swannnny riverrrrrr
Farrrr, farrr awayyy
Titwillow, titwillow, titwillow"
I don't think, that's your style
But I'll tell ya pilgrim, I'm versatile
Aretha Franklin, Aretha Franklin
Aretha Franklin let me rock ya let me rock ya Aretha Franklin
Let me rock ya Aretha Franklin that's all I wanna do
Aretha Franklinnnnnn
Da haahh, da haahh
Da ha-hahh ha-hahh ha

Shawn Brown, "Rappin' Duke"

What Exactly Did Charley Crockett Say About Twin Temple + Jack White?

In his since-deleted post (a screenshot can be seen further down the page), Crockett alleged there was more to the story that was initially presented in Twin Temple's statement about being dropped over "Satanic imagery."

He shared that they had made production requests that weren't able to be granted physically that led him to take a closer look at their show. After seeing more of what their stage show was, he made the decision it wasn't the vibe he was looking for, cut them loose and insists they were paid in full for the lost dates.

"I never dropped that band from those [two] shows for 'Satanic Imagery,' they made it up and dragged me by a rope real good," he shared. "They got together with their business folks and plotted for days before finally making their public statement, designed for effect. Purposely making it look like it was a whole tour. Dog whistling about religious and creative freedom. Of course my rights didn't matter since they had a new record coming out and a headline tour to announce."

As for Jack White, he commented, "He used it to sell tickets too and I lost a lot of respect for him." He went on to add, "I wonder why he wasn't so outspoken back when he was in The White Stripes 20-something years ago. They purposely avoided political issues. Maybe he was worried about losing audience back when it was all on the line and he needed all the help he could get."

charley crockett post — Instagram: @charleycrockett

What Did Twin Temple Say After Being Removed From Charley Crockett's Shows?

Loudwire spoke with Twin Temple in late July about the controversy and singer Alexandra James told us, "We never expected this level of response. I would say we were surprised with how quickly it all snowballed."

As for Jack White and his support of the band with an invite to open for him, she added, "It meant the world to us, 'cause when you get removed from a show, there's always the fear, as a smaller independent artist, that you're being rejected by the industry. Charley's a pretty well-known — I won't call him mainstream — but he's a much bigger artist than us. So you're always like, 'Okay, are other people going to do similar things to us?'"

"But I think Jack coming in and backing us up meant a lot to us — not only because we've been fans of his for so long, but because him just saying, 'Nah, they're alright,' [meant something too]."

Charley Crockett, Twin Temple and Jack White in 2026

With the dust settling on the controversy, all three acts are back out in front of audiences in the coming weeks.

Charley Crockett, currently promoting his Clovis album, starts things back up again on Aug. 26 in Tulsa, Oklahoma. He's currently booked solid with shows into early October.

Twin Temple already had dates booked with Danzig when the controversy happened and they've since added more fall shows around that, including the aforementioned performance opening for Jack White Sept. 29 in Los Angeles. Look for them back out on the road in support of their Doomed Lovers album starting Sept. 9 in Albuquerque.

Jack White is in the midst of world tour dates in support of his Frozen Charlotte album, playing in Shanghai, China tonight (Aug. 19). His run through Europe and the U.K. concludes Sept. 2 in Dublin, Ireland before he jumps back stateside for a North American tour kicking off Sept. 18 in Cincinnati. All dates and ticketing info can be found through Jack White's website.