Secretary of State Antony Blinken is also listening to 'Driver's License'

Antony Blinken.
(Image credit: Alex Edelman-Pool/Getty Images)

At this point, it's no secret that Secretary of State Antony Blinken — frontman of his now-infamous "wonk rock" band Ablinken — is a music guy. But what new music does the high-ranking government official listen to in his free time? As it turns out, a little bit of everything (if only just to stay current).

In a Rolling Stone interview published Tuesday, Blinken named Taylor Swift and her self-proclaimed musical child Olivia Rodrigo as recent plays. When asked his thoughts on Rodrigo's smash hit "Driver's License," Blinken said the song was "really good," and that, unlike him, the 18-year-old singer/songwriter has a natural "gift." "I have to work at it," he said, "And even then." He speaks just as highly of Grammy-award winning producer and frequent Swift collaborator Jack Antonoff: "That guy is amazing."

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Brigid Kennedy

Brigid Kennedy worked at The Week from 2021 to 2023 as a staff writer, junior editor and then story editor, with an interest in U.S. politics, the economy and the music industry.