Jack White and the Raconteurs were nominated for a “Musical Event of the Year” Country Music Award recently for their filmed collaboration with Ricky Skaggs and Ashley Monroe at a Nashville recording studio. The reason this somewhat random group of musicians got together has always been a bit of a mystery (everything seems to be with Jack), but in a Q&A with 9513, Monroe has provided a few details about her first encounter with White and his band.

Long before Taylor Swift sold a gazillion records and Kanye West made her blush on MTV, helping her to sell another gazillion records, she was still somewhat under the radar, save for the country radio crowd. Well, she was with Ashley Monroe when they spotted White getting off his airplane and here’s how it went down, according to Monroe:

She says, “Hi I’m Taylor Swift.” Everyone recognizes her everywhere, you know. And he’s like, “Taylor…?” He wasn’t familiar with her. And then, I’m like, [sheepishly whispering] “Hi I’m Ashley Monroe.” He looked up and said, “Ashley Monroe the singer?” I thought he was making fun of my name, because it almost sounds like a stage name. It sounds a little fake. I said, “Yeah, I’m Ashley Monroe the singer.” And he says, “No really, did I hear you on the Opry?” And he named the song I sang. He says, “I was listening to the Opry the other day. Oh my gosh, I’ve just been raving about you.”

Years later, after Monroe had been kicking herself for not setting up a collaboration, Jack emailed her out of the blue to set up their CMA-nominated “event.”

I enjoy this story, but I do regret feeding the celeb news beast a “Jack White disses Taylor Swift?!” headline. Besides, Swift still wants to work with him and Jack definitely knows who she is by now.

Jack White caused quite a stir at the Toronto International Film Festival this past weekend, announcing the White Stripes’ denial from the Guinness Book of World Records, an upcoming album he recorded of Nashville transit bus drivers, and, of course, spoofing Kanye West. Most importantly, however, is that reviews of the new White Stripes documentary, Under Great White Northern Lights, have all been (pardon the pun) glowing.

A scene from the film, which sounds like a somewhat somber affair, came out today as an “exclusive” on multiple sites, but it’s up on good ol’ YouTube now, so there goes that. Between this scene and the much talked about poignant final “Meg crying” scene, I, for one, am hoping they found a distributor at TIFF to get this thing into theaters.

Watch Jack and Meg walk through a cemetery in Canada while a live performance of “We’re Going to be Friends” plays here or embedded below:

As you may recall from the pre-Swiftgate era, controversy erupted last week over Activision’s use of Kurt Cobain’s image in Guitar Hero 5. In that case, Cobain wasn’t here to chime in on the debate over whether forcing the Nirvana front man’s likeness to sing Bon Jovi songs Karaoke style was just or even legally sound. Now I’m not sure if they signed off on this, but more famed (though living) rockers are getting the music video game avatar treatment: Stooge Iggy Pop and the White Stripes’ Jack White.**

**A rep for LEGO Rock Band has informed us that, in fact, neither Jack or Meg White are represented in the game. The leaked image of White was apparently a fake. We regret the error and apologize.

As seen in the leaked image (via Jeuxvideo.fr) from upcoming game Lego Rock Band above, Iggy appears in his iconic shirtless, microphone stand-wielding state.

Lego Rock Band, featuring Pop and the White Stripes is due out in time for holiday season, while Twitter rants and public outrage should drop later this week. Meanwhile, watch Pop’s video game avatar sing “The Passenger” here or embedded below:

Jack White may have ditched his hometown of Detroit to settle down more comfortably in Nashville, but he’s definitely not leaving behind his old stomping grounds to fester amid the recession. In fact, the White Stripes, Raconteurs, and Dead Weather rock star is trying his hand at philanthropy.

The Detroit News reports that White covertly donated $170,000 towards the restoration of Clark Park field, a baseball diamond where White played ball as a kid. “He was good,” said Mo Blackwell, former brother-in-law to White and father of Dirtbombs drummer, Cass Records founder, and Jack’s right-hand man at Third Man Records, Ben Blackwell. “Smooth left-handed swing.”

Jack has always kept in touch with the volunteers at the park, including Deb Sumner, who recalled meeting once-girlfriend “Rene Wellzinger, or however you say it.” Sumner had been imploring Jack to do a charity concert for years when an LA lawyer called on behalf of a then-anonymous donor. White’s donations paid for restorations that include new dugouts, grandstands, and a revamped infield.

Aww. I can tell that we’re going to be friends, Jack.

It isn’t the first time Jack White has been acknowledged by an award show for his country music skills (he won two Grammys for Loretta Lynn’s brilliant Van Lear Rose record for Best Country Album and Best Country Vocal Collaboration on the single “Portland Oregon”), but at this year’s Country Music Awards, Jack will be joined by his fellow Raconteurs and pitted against country giants Brooks & Dunn, Kenny Chesney, Lee Ann Womack, and Carrie Underwood for Musical Event of the Year.

So what “event” were Jack, Little Jack, Brendan Benson, and Patrick Keeler nominated for? Back in 2008, The Raconteurs were joined by country singer Ashley Monroe and multi-instrumentalist Ricky Skaggs for a special bluegrass-inspired version of Consolers of the Lonely standout track “Old Enough.” In one day, the group gathered in a Nashville studio, worked out the arrangement, and filmed the entire jam.

Check out Jack and company’s CMA-nominated “event” below or click here:

When Italian soccer fans were victorious at the World Cup recently, they adopted the White Stripes’ iconic riff from “Seven Nation Army” as their official anthem and the Rolling Stones were even joined by two star players for an a capella version soon after. The song has since become a stadium chant at matches all over Europe, where many soccer hooligans aren’t even aware of its origin at this point. “I am honored that the Italians have adopted this song as their own,” White said. “Nothing is more beautiful in music than when people embrace a melody and allow it to enter the pantheon of folk music.”

Well, it may be okay for a stadium of sports fans, but White wasn’t too keen on his It Might Get Loud co-star taking liberties with said “folk” riff. Daily Express reports that U2’s the Edge wrote a guitar melody and performed it for his brother, who warned him that it was too similar to White’s guitar (detuned down an octave) riff. “I went back and listened, and it wasn’t exactly (Seven Nation Army),” the Edge said. To be completely sure (and probably to avoid an embarrassing plagiarism lawsuit), Edge brought it to the man himself: “I played it for Jack, and he was like, ‘Mmm, it’s a bit close, isn’t it?’”

See that, Coldplay? If you had only let Joe Satriani and Cat Stevens hear your demos, that whole mess could’ve been avoided.

Jesus. Cool news like this sure keeps my blood pumping. In an interview with Rolling Stone, Keith Richards has revealed that he is now among Jack White’s incredible list of collaborators. What’s more, rumors about White possibly producing the next Rolling Stones record may have a bit more truth to them than previously thought. There must’ve been some bromancing going on at the filming of Scorsese’s Shine a Light last year.

“I enjoy working with Jack,” Richards said. “We’ve done a couple of tracks.” He also further debunked today’s rumor that Charlie Watts has quit the Stones by saying he’s “trying to gather the boys together. One way or another, I’ll get them back in line.”

On that Jack White producing the Stones rumor? “I couldn’t fuel that rumor any more than to say Jack and I are in touch.”

Yes, there is a pulse, people.