Taylor Swift and Kim Kardashian have experienced numerous highs and lows over time.
The dynamic between Swift and Kanye West, which had its share of tensions, led Kardashian to become involved in 2015 when Swift and West had a public fallout and then brief reconciliation.
The conflict escalated in 2016 with the release of West’s track “Famous” from his album The Life of Pablo, which included disparaging remarks about Swift. Kardashian then controversially released a selectively edited recording of a conversation between Swift and West about the song, causing public opinion to sway heavily in her favor as the hashtag #KimExposedTaylorParty went viral.
In response, Swift’s 2017 album Reputation featured significant use of snake motifs, symbolizing her embrace of the criticism she faced, particularly the snake emojis that had populated her Instagram comments.
As Swift gears up to launch a re-recorded version of Reputation, she recently discussed the long-standing feud in an interview with TIME, where she was recognized as the 2023 Person of the Year. She described the public backlash as feeling like “a career death” and admitted it “took [her] down psychologically to a place [she’d] never been before.”
Looking back, the evolving dynamics between Swift and Kardashian, including their public statements, have marked their relationship over the years.
2009: Kim Kardashian Expresses Admiration for Taylor Swift
In 2009, during an interview with Entertainment Tonight on the red carpet, Kim Kardashian shared that “Love Story” by Taylor Swift was her favorite song at the moment. She enthusiastically declared, “I love Taylor Swift! I’m the biggest Taylor Swift fan.” She also mentioned that she followed Swift on Twitter, playfully noting, “I’m watching you, Taylor!”
November 11, 2012: Taylor Swift and Kim Kardashian Together at MTV EMAs
Swift and Kardashian had one of their initial public interactions in 2012, posing alongside Rita Ora at the MTV European Music Awards.
February 8, 2015: Warm Encounter Between Taylor Swift and Kim Kardashian at the Grammys
During a period of reconciliation between Swift and Kanye West, Swift was seen warmly engaging with Kardashian in the audience. Following a group photo with JAY-Z and West, Swift was captured hugging Kardashian.
August 30, 2015: Taylor Swift and Kim Kardashian’s Moment at MTV VMAs
Swift and West publicly made amends when Swift presented West with the Video Vanguard Award at the MTV VMAs. Swift, after delivering a speech, was seen embracing Kardashian as they watched West on stage.
However, their amicable relationship took a turn in February 2016 when West released his song “Famous,” which included controversial lyrics about Swift. Swift addressed the issue during her Grammys acceptance speech for Album of the Year, emphasizing resilience and self-achievement to young women.
June 16, 2016: Kim Kardashian Discusses the Controversy Over “Famous” Lyrics
Kardashian claimed in the July issue of GQ that Swift was aware of the lyrics in “Famous” before its release. She stated, “She totally approved that… She wanted to all of a sudden act like she didn’t. I swear, my husband gets so much s— for things [when] he really was doing proper protocol and even called to get it approved.”
June 2016: Taylor Swift’s Team Responds to Kim Kardashian’s Statements
Following Kardashian’s claims, Swift’s spokesperson issued a statement. “Taylor does not hold anything against Kim Kardashian as she recognizes the pressure Kim must be under and that she is only repeating what she has been told by Kanye West,” the statement read.
It further clarified, “However, that does not change the fact that much of what Kim is saying is incorrect. Kanye West and Taylor only spoke once on the phone while she was on vacation with her family in January of 2016 and they have never spoken since. Taylor has never denied that conversation took place. It was on that phone call that Kanye West also asked her to release the song on her Twitter account, which she declined to do.”
July 17, 2016: Kim Kardashian Defends Kanye West in “Keeping Up with the Kardashians” Episode
In a July 2016 episode of “Keeping Up with the Kardashians,” Kim Kardashian discussed the ongoing feud between Kanye West and Taylor Swift, as well as West’s contentious outburst during his “Saturday Night Live” appearance where he labeled Swift as fake. Kardashian explained her decision to speak out in a GQ interview, stating, “I never talk s— about anyone publicly, especially in interviews. But I had so had it. I wanted to defend him in it.”
Towards the end of the episode, Kardashian and her mother, Kris Jenner, discussed the interview’s repercussions. Jenner suggested, “What would happen if you just called Taylor up and say ‘What happened? How did this go so south?’ I guess I don’t understand the motivation to flip… maybe she took it the wrong way. My advice would be to give Taylor Swift a call.” Kardashian responded, “Thank you for your lovely advice, but I’m not going to take it.”
July 17, 2016: Kim Kardashian Releases Edited Video of Kanye West and Taylor Swift’s Phone Call
Following the episode, Kardashian posted truncated clips on Snapchat from a phone call between West and Swift discussing the lyrics of “Famous,” which included contentious lines. In the video, Swift is heard reacting to the lyrics with, “It’s like a compliment… What I give a f— is you as a person, and as a friend, I want things that make you feel good.” She acknowledged West’s heads-up, saying, “I never would’ve expected you to like tell me about a line in your song… If people ask me about it, look, I think it would be great for me to be like, ‘He called me and told me before it came out… Joke’s on you, guys. We’re fine.'”
Swift’s team responded to the video’s release, telling PEOPLE, “Taylor was never made aware of the actual lyrics, ‘I made that bitch famous.'”
The internet quickly sided with Kardashian, and #KimExposedTaylorParty began trending.
July 17, 2016: Taylor Swift Responds to Released Footage
Swift swiftly addressed the released footage, emphasizing the omission of West informing her about the specific line, “that bitch.” She stated, “It doesn’t exist because it never happened. You don’t get to control someone’s emotional response to being called ‘that bitch’ in front of the entire world.” She detailed her initial reactions to the song and their conversation, “Of course I wanted to like the song. I wanted to believe Kanye when he told me that I would love the song. I wanted us to have a friendly relationship. He promised to play the song for me, but he never did. While I wanted to be supportive of Kanye on the phone call, you cannot ‘approve’ a song you haven’t heard. Being falsely painted as a liar when I was never given the full story or played any part of the song is character assassination.”
Swift concluded, “I would very much like to be excluded from this narrative, one that I have never asked to be a part of, since 2009,” captioning her post, “That moment when Kanye West secretly records your phone call, then Kim posts it on the Internet.”
August 27, 2017: Taylor Swift Addresses Past Controversy in “Look What You Made Me Do” Music Video
Nearly a year after Kim Kardashian released the controversial phone call between Kanye West and Taylor Swift on Snapchat, Swift announced her sixth studio album, Reputation. Prior to the album announcement, Swift shared cryptic videos of a snake on Instagram, symbolically taking back the snake emoji used against her in comments to suggest she was deceitful.
In the music video for the album’s first single, “Look What You Made Me Do,” Swift incorporated numerous references to the feud. The video featured abundant snake imagery and a chair with the phrase “Et tu, Brute” from William Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar, likening West’s actions to betrayal. At the video’s close, different iterations of Swift appeared, one of which mocked the editing of video footage, remarking, “I’m going to edit this later.”
January 14, 2019: Kim Kardashian Declares Feud with Taylor Swift Over
During a segment called “Squash That Beef!” on Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen, Kim Kardashian addressed her past feud with Taylor Swift. Kardashian expressed that she was “over it,” suggesting that the conflict had been left behind. She humorously noted that she would prefer to be stuck in an elevator with Swift over Drake, hinting at Drake’s own complex relationship with West.
March 2019: Taylor Swift Hints at Lingering Tensions with Kim Kardashian and Kanye West
In a revealing interview for Elle magazine, Taylor Swift reflected on her experiences with West and Kardashian. Swift discussed overcoming adversities, including public backlash, by finding strength in humor and self-respect. She recounted how during her Stadium Tour, a giant inflatable snake, dubbed Karyn, became a symbol of her resilience against her detractors. “It’s the Stadium Tour equivalent of responding to a troll’s hateful Instagram comment with ‘lol,'” she explained.
Swift also touched on the lack of apology from those who had wronged her, stating, “It would be nice if we could get an apology from people who bully us, but maybe all I’ll ever get is the satisfaction of knowing I could survive it, and thrive in spite of it.”
March 20, 2020: Extended Clip of Kanye West and Taylor Swift’s Call Leaks Online
On March 20, 2020, an extended version of the phone conversation between Kanye West and Taylor Swift, initially shared by Kim Kardashian in an edited form, surfaced online. This new leak revealed more details about their discussion regarding West’s single “Famous.” In the clips, West is heard asking Swift to help launch the song via her Twitter. He mentions a “very controversial line” about her, prompting Swift to express concern about the nature of the lyrics. West described them, saying, “‘To all my Southside n—– that know me best/ I feel like Taylor Swift might owe me sex,” which Swift responded to with laughter, indicating she didn’t find it mean. She expressed the need to think over the proposal due to its controversial nature and agreed to discuss further after hearing the full song, which she asserted she hadn’t before its release.
Kardashian, reacting to the leak, liked a tweet suggesting the leak didn’t reveal anything new, expressing confusion over the ongoing public interest.
March 23, 2020: Taylor Swift Addresses the Leak of the Full Phone Call
Following the leak, Taylor Swift took to Instagram Stories to comment on the situation, framing it as vindication that she had been truthful about the nature of the call. She shifted focus from the controversy, urging her followers to support organizations like the World Health Organization and Feeding America during the coronavirus pandemic.
March 24, 2020: Kim Kardashian Responds to the Full Phone Call Leak
Kim Kardashian responded on Twitter to Swift’s remarks about the leaked footage. She clarified that her main issue had been with Swift’s previous public statements, which she felt were disproven by the leaked conversation. Kardashian emphasized that the controversy for her was never about the use of derogatory terms without permission but rather about the alleged dishonesty regarding the discussion of the song’s lyrics. Swift’s publicist, Tree Paine, countered by reiterating her initial statements and questioning the motives behind the leak of the video.
December 16, 2021: Kim Kardashian Expresses Fondness for Taylor Swift’s Music
In a conversation on the Honestly podcast hosted by Bari Weiss, Kim Kardashian shared her appreciation for Taylor Swift’s music during a quick-fire question segment. When prompted about her favorite Swift album, Kardashian responded, “I really like a lot of her songs. They’re all super cute and catchy. I’d have to look in my phone to get a name [of an album].”
During her birthday celebrations in 2023, Kim Kardashian wore a flowing purple dress that led fans to draw comparisons with Taylor Swift’s “Speak Now” album cover. Amid speculations about her possibly entering her “Speak Now era,” Kardashian intriguingly reshared a birthday tribute from her friend Liz Woods, which included Swift’s song “Speak Now,” further fueling fan discussions.
December 7, 2023: Taylor Swift Discusses Impact of Feud with Kanye West and Kim Kardashian
As the 2023 Person of the Year, Taylor Swift opened up in a TIME cover story about various aspects of her life, including the profound impact of her feud with Kanye West and Kim Kardashian. She described the experience surrounding the infamous leaked phone call as akin to “career death.” Swift detailed the emotional toll it took, saying it brought her “down psychologically to a place I’ve never been before.”
Swift revealed, “Make no mistake — my career was taken away from me.” She continued, expressing the betrayal and isolation she felt, “You have a fully manufactured frame job, in an illegally recorded phone call, which Kim Kardashian edited and then put out to say to everyone that I was a liar. That took me down psychologically to a place I’ve never been before.” Swift shared the extreme measures she took for her mental well-being, including moving to a foreign country and isolating herself from others to recover from the ordeal.
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