Taylor Swift Guitar-Smasher Says He Wasn't Trying to Be 'Malicious'

Gary Estes , the Texas man who spent $4,000 to destroy a Taylor Swift guitar, is shaking off criticism following the highly debated viral moment.

The 67-year-old has spoken out in the aftermath of the controversial video, which saw him bidding thousands of dollars to obtain a guitar allegedly signed by the pop star ... only to smash it with a hammer directly after buying it.

Estes says he didn't have any "malicious" intentions behind the destructive gesture ... clarifying it "was just a joke" -- and one he didn't even come up with.

He continued ... "There was nothing mean about it, nothing bad about it. It was just a joke that they were making up on the stage, and we just followed through with a joke."

Auctioneer Craig Meier has since defended Estes ... as the Texas man was handed both a hammer and the guitar during the charity auction at the Ellis County Wild Game Dinner in Waxahachie, Texas Sunday night.

Meier said ... "It was a funny, light-hearted thing. I know maybe it seemed to be malicious, but everybody was laughing."

While Estes' political motives have been downplayed amid the outrage, Meier did note the action was clearly "a political thing."

Meier said the whole bit was meant to be "a light-hearted bit of a dig at Taylor" for using her influence to weigh in on politics .

The pop singer publicly endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris after the presidential debate in September. In her statement, Swift, who previously endorsed Joe Biden in the 2020 election, said Harris was a "steady-handed, gifted leader" who would champion causes close to her heart.

The endorsement sparked "Bad Blood" between the singer and Harris' political rival, Donald Trump ... who declared his "hate" for the Grammy winner after her statement.

Estes isn't the first person to destroy Swift merch following the endorsement, either. Several Trump-supporting Swifties took to social media to disavow the singer ... with one notably burning her collection of CDs and T-shirts.

Ooh, look what you made them do, Taylor!!!

By the way ... the smashed guitar is now listed on eBay.