Blondie’s “Rip Her To Shreds” Lyrics Meaning
On Blondie’s “Rip Her To Shreds”, Debbie Harry is basically dissing a woman whom she refers to as “Miss Groupie Supreme” and other unflattering yet more-ambiguous appellations. And fundamentally, her gripe with her is that she is famous yet superficial. She built up her standing on some type of façade, dressing and behaving in such a manner as to draw attention to herself. And due to the singer’s hatred for this individual, she has the desire to “rip her to shreds”, i.e. cause her some type of harm.
“She’s so dull, come on rip her to shreds”
“Rip Her to Shreds” attacks Nancy Spungen?
There is a popular theory, which has apparently persisted throughout the years, that this tune is actually about one Nancy Spungen (1958-1978). Nancy was the former girlfriend of Sid Vicious (1957-1979) of Sex Pistols’ fame. According to history, Nancy proved to be quite popular herself, despite not actually being an entertainer. That is to say that she was akin to a reality TV star of more-modern times. However, outside of dating Sid, she was largely known for displaying off-putting behavior in public.
But that being said, Debbie Harry went on to clarify that this tune is not actually about Spungen. Rather what she and her bandmates are actually speaking to is the tabloid media’s tendency to exploit famous females, which at that time especially included Debbie herself.
So interpreting the lyrics from that perspective, then the singer is actually portraying the role of said exploitative and demeaning media.
Release Date of “Rip Her to Shreds”
This track came out during November of 1977. It is featured on Blondie’s maiden album, which itself is entitled “Blondie”. And the labels behind it are Private Stock Records and Chrysalis Records.
Writing and Production Credits
“Rip Her to Shreds” was written by Debbie Harry and her bandmate, Chris Stein. And the track was produced by one Richard Gottehrer.
Was this a Blondie single?
Yes. It was actually the third and final single the band released from “Blondie”.
