If you head on over to Lily Allen's MySpace page you'll be treated to a Grade-A dressing down of both the NME and its editor, Conor McNicholas. What set her off was the magazine dropping the proposed plan to put the five women who cracked the top ten of this year's cool list on the cover. Muse landed the cover instead. Now, Lily's had problems with the NME before, and only agreed to deal with them again because of the cover's message of a strong female pressence in music. When this fell through, Allen had some choice words:
"Now I don't care for the 'Cool List', and I said this to them in the interview, which is probably why they didn't print it. I don't really think the NME are in any position to tell us who is cool and who isn't; personally I don't think a bunch of people sitting in an office drinking tea, inventing musical genres, and watching Nathan Barley DVDs are leading any kind of cool brigade, do you? But I did find it interesting that they wanted to put five women on the cover, and wanted to name 2006 our year."
McNicholas, trying to make amends, only made matters worse, with this statement:
"This year's Cool List is a testament to the raft of hugely talented women who have taken hold of the music scene in 2006," he said. "From Beth to Lily to Karen, they've brought new energy to a scene dominated by men. They're also living proof that you can still rock a crowd when you're wearing stilettos."
Allen's response:
"I mean how fucking patronising 'you can still rock a crowd wearing stilletos.'
Is that all we are , stilleto wearing people , is that all he could say ,that we brought a 'new energy' to the music scene . Don't make me sick , wev'e always been here you arrogant prick , this was your chance to actually show you meant it . And instead you put Muse on the cover . Cause you thought that your readers might not buy a magazine with an overweight lesbian and a not particularly attractive looking me , on the front . Wankers ."
Click here to read the entire rant.