Polymath collaborator, rocker or music producer? Jack Antonoff checks off all those boxes, and more! The American singer-songwriter’s name may have slipped your mind, but once you catch a glimpse of his discography and music credits, you will be left with no choice but to do a double-take and rub your eyes due to bewilderment.
Over the years, Antonoff has gained prominence as a longtime professional partner and friend of Taylor Swift‘s, aka the man behind massive hits like “Sweeter Than Fiction,” tracks off her albums “1989,” “Reputation,” “Lover,” “Folklore,” “Evermore,” “Midnights,” “The Tortured Poets Department,” and all her so-far-released re-recorded “Taylor’s Versions” records.
Their iconic partnership goes so deep that they even have a secret handshake – an unforgettable highlight of their award show appearances. And yet, he was seemingly snubbed by his friend for life on her highly anticipated 12th studio album “The Life of a Showgirl.” Swift lifted the lid on her upcoming record’s track-listing on Wednesday (US time), leaving Jack out of the picture after a history-making musical ride together.
The supposed “snub” in question, however, was also the need of the hour, especially since “The Life of a Showgirl” marks the billionaire pop star’s first album after she masterfully reclaimed the album masters of first six albums, which she lost in a prior contentious battle with the controversial music executive, Scooter Braun.
As a consequence of finally reconnecting with her musical roots, the “Love Story” songbird has brought back Swedish icons Max Martin and Shellback as producer. The major shakeup is almost poetic, especially since the duo also goes way back with Swift, just as Antonoff does, as they were there for the original fan-favourite “Red,” “1989,” and “Reputation” albums.
While the switch-up at hand seems poetically necessary to honour Swift going full-circle, Jack’s contributions will never not matter. Even the record-breaking Eras world tour-maker previously acknowledged that sentiment at the 2023 MTV VMAs, saying, they “will continue working together til’ 2089,” with their first album together being the “1989.”
Who is Jack Antonoff?
What fans may have particularly forgotten about one of the “Anti-Hero” crooner’s “best friends in the world” is that his music honours aren’t merely limited to the Taylor Swift universe. He’s also significantly contributed to a wide array of top musicians like Kendrick Lamar, Sabrina Carpenter, Lana Del Rey, Pink, Troye Sivan, Carly Rae Jepsen, Gracie Abrams, Sia, Doja Cat and Paramore, to name a few.
Born in March 1984, the record producer’s golden artistry knows no bound. But even more importantly, he is a Grammy winner in his own right. At the 2024 Grammys, he won his third consecutive Producer of the Year title, Non-Classical, becoming the second producer in Grammy history to do so.
With a reported approximate net worth of $50 million, according to Celebrity Net Worth, the multi-hyphenate star is married to actress Margaret Qualley, who is the daughter of Andie MacDowell and the heavily-nominated star of the Oscar-winning 2024 movie The Substance.
Jack Antonoff, a boy band saga
The 41-year-old has been performing nearly all his life. In 1998, he started his first band, Outline, during his high school years as a sophomore. According to Parade, the band members went their own way in 2002, pushing Antonoff in a new direction form the band Steel Train alongside his pal Scott Irby-Ranniar. The group even went on to perform at festivals as big as Lollapalooza, Coachella, and even shows like Late Night with Conan O’Brien and Late Show with David Letterman.
He finally shot up to mainstream fame when he joined Nate Ruess and Andrew Dost in 2008, thanks to the new band Fun. With a groundbreaking hit single like “We Are Young” as part of their discography, the group won the 2013 Grammy for the Best New Artist and Song of the Year. A bit down the line in 2013, Antonoff kicked off a new journey with the rock band Bleachers, a band featured across Hollywood movie soundtracks like Love, Simon and Minions: The Rise of Gru.
Additionally, he is also a member of the band Red Hearse.
How long have Jack Antonoff and Taylor Swift been friends?
Although their professional collaborations launched in 2013, they met at the MTV EMAs in November 2012, according to Cosmopolitan. “Sweeter Than Fiction” marks their first team-up, following which, he co-wrote and co-produced and endless series of masterpieces alongside Taylor.
“You Are in Love,” a song listed on the “1989” album was inspired by Jack and his romantic past with then-girlfriend Lena Dunham, as per Swift’s side of the story spilled to Elle.
“I’ve never had that, so I wrote that song about things that Lena [Dunham] has told me about her and Jack [Antonoff]. That’s just basically stuff she’s told me. And I think that that kind of relationship—God, it sounds like it would just be so beautiful—would also be hard. It would also be mundane at time,” she told the outlet at the time.
Jumping to 2016, the pair scored their Album of the Year at the Grammys for the same record. Numerous Instagram clicks still seen on Taylor Swift’s Instagram profile catch Antonoff in group clicks alongside the singer’s other pals.
Cut to six years later, Swift dedicated an entire IG post to her album “Midnights,” wherein he gushed about Jack as being her “friend for life.” As a drummer and guitarist himself, Antonoff even joined his best pal onstage during the Eras Tour.
Jack and Taylor have never shied away from complementing each other, and it is with the pop diva that the multi-faceted artist found validation as a producer. “She’s the first person who recognized me as a producer. A lot of people are afraid to sign off on something that isn’t done by a proven person,” he told TIME in 2023.
“I had written lots of songs and produced them, but they would always sort of go somewhere else. So the label or whoever could say, oh, we had this person produce it. And, you know, I put my heart and soul into that song and she said, ‘I love it.'”