Noel Gallagher Attempts to Quash Jay-Z Beef

BY Josiah HughesPublished Aug 15, 2008

It could have been bigger than Tupac and Biggie (well, not really) had it spiralled out of control but Oasis front-man Noel Gallagher has expressed regret over his harsh comments about Jay-Z headlining this year’s Glastonbury festival. "I wasn’t saying I was better than Jay-Z as a person or rock was greater than hip-hop as a thing or whatever it is,” he said to NME. "I said what I said, and it was wrong, or it was taken wrong, and now all this.”

Back in April, Noel expressed his frustration with Jay-Z’s headlining spot to the BBC News, stating, "I'm sorry, but Jay-Z? No chance… Glastonbury has a tradition of guitar music and even when they throw the odd curve ball in on a Sunday night you go, 'Kylie Minogue?' I don't know about it. But I'm not having hip-hop at Glastonbury. It's wrong."

Jay-Z responded by opening his Glastonbury performance with a cover of Oasis’ smash hit "Wonderwall.” His recently leaked "Jockin’ Jay-Z,” from the forthcoming Blueprint 3, even opens with the line, "That bloke from Oasis said I couldn't play guitar/somebody shoulda told him I'm a fucking rock star/today is gonna be the day that I'm gonna throw it back to you.”

Of course, in true Gallagher tradition, Noel can’t get too apologetic without defending himself. "For my own part I can sit here and say I never dissed that guy,” he said. "I never would. But there’s no point in going on about it, because you end up sounding like Heather Mills: ‘I said this! I meant that!’ I’ll have a beer with him one day and it’ll all be fine.”

Oasis will be releasing Dig Out Your Soul, their seventh studio album, in October. In the meantime, the band will be touring Canada with Ryan Adams this fall.

Oasis tour dates:

8/27 Vancouver, BC - GM Place
8/29 Edmonton, AB - Rexall Place
8/30 Calgary, AB - Pengrowth Saddledome
9/1 Winnipeg, MB - MTS Centre
9/4 Ottawa, ON - Scotiabank Place
9/5 Montreal, QC - Bell Centre
9/6 Toronto, ON - Toronto Island Park
9/9 London, ON - The John Labatt Centre

Jay-Z "Wonderwall”/"99 Problems” (live at Glastonbury)

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