To celebrate the end of 2014, we’re republishing all our most-popular post. And this one, from January, is about that time one of the year’s most-talked about women got slammed for, well, not much, really…
The Grammys proved once and for all that the whole world hates Taylor Swift.
First, Taylor showed a few seconds of unrestrained excitement when she thought she’d won Album of the Year for her record Red… but then it turned out presenter Alicia Keys was actually reading the words ‘Random Access Memories’. And Taylor hadn’t in fact won. Take a look:
Instantly, social media site Twitter blew up with snarky tweets:
“What! Taylor Swift thought she won a Grammy! LOL”
“The moment Taylor thought she won was the first time she’s made a genuine face!”
“Honestly, Taylor Swift, I just hate you so much.”
Next, Taylor was caught on camera dancing wildly in the front row of Kendrick Lamar’s performance.
The internet backlash was, again, ferocious and instantaneous.
“Taylor Swift trying to dance to Kendrick Lamar is literally the most uncomfortable thing I have ever witnessed in my life”
“Just when you thought Taylor Swift couldn’t get any whiter, she started dancing”
“I hate Taylor Swift so much”.
It appears that hating Taylor Swift is one of the internet’s favourite hobbies.
Just Google her name and you’re hit with a virtual tsunami of fierce hatred. There was the time she dissed One Direction member (and ex-boyfriend) Harry Styles and an army of his fans sent her death threats. And the time she performed on the catwalk alongside Victoria’s Secret models and everyone – including supermodel Cara Delevigne – thought it was OK to comment on her body shape compared to the “angels”.
And then there’s every other time Taylor’s danced in public with total abandon. And the internet has exploded in response with cruel taunts about her eye-hand coordination.
But here’s the thing. Hatred for Taylor Swift seems entirely arbitrary. Nobody appears able to properly justify trolling her, or disliking her. Substitute any other young pop star into any of the above-described scenarios and the public reaction would have been completely different.
If Jennifer Lawrence was caught dancing terribly at a concert, we’d make a million memes saying “Look at JLaw! She’s just like us! She’s so goofy and loveable!” If Katy Perry dated a One Direction singer and written a song about it, she’d dress up as a cupcake and we’d all fawn over her again. If Rihanna performed at a Victoria’s Secret show, we wouldn’t dare compare her bodacious bod to Miranda Kerr’s.
So why do we hate on Taylor Swift more than anyone else? Why do we fawn over some celebrities unconditionally, but talk shit about everything Taylor Swift does?
What has she done to deserve such ferocious treatment online? Is it her squeaky clean country-music image? Her feline good looks? The string of famous ex-boyfriends she’s left in her wake? Is it Tall Poppy syndrome?
Because, actually, Taylor Swift has more going for her in the likeable department than most famous 24-year-olds.
She’s a strong, wholesome role model; someone parents actually approve of their kids watching. She’s gorgeous. Her voice is incredible and she writes all her own songs.
She plays the piano like a pro, wears glasses like your favourite nerd, and is always the first to make fun of herself.
She’s also, as far as we can tell, a sweet friend – protecting Selena Gomez from getting back together with Justin Bieber and tweeting her support for 17-year-old Kiwi singer, Lorde, when she won two Grammys.
She’s never had a sex tape leaked, a DUI charge, or a public meltdown. She’s never been busted for drugs or attacked a photographer. She doesn’t trash hotel rooms, forget to wear underwear, or sell sex in her videos. She has all the makings of an icon and a genuinely worthwhile role model for young women.
All the internet haters just need to Keep Calm and Appreciate Swifty. I gotchya back Taylor.
Are you a Taylor Swift fan? Is she deserving of the dislike she cops online?
You call follow Kate Leaver on twitter @kateileaver.
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Top Comments
People need to get it into their heads that it is not a judicial law to like Taylor Swift. Want to know why reasons for disliking Taylor Swift...........she is fake, she holds grudges and strikes at people in her meaningless lyrics (e.g. half her songs are about her ex boyfriends acting as if they're the problem when she has been through so many it is clear she is the problem.) She bashed Katy Perry in her song and basically hates on her because a back up dancer left Taylor to work for Katy (clearly they were offered a better wage with Katy.) She slut shames but god forbid she gets a taste of her own medicine, literally said there is a special place in hell for Amy Poheler and Tina Fey after they made a joke about her (may I remind Taylor that as comedians it is their job to make jokes about people so Taylor should suck it up.) Wrote mean about a critic who called her voice flat, (may I also remind Taylor that as a critic it is their job to critique and sometimes you're not going to like what they say, and if you can't handle criticism you shouldn't be in the business you're in.) For someone who sings about "shaking it off" she seems to find doing so pretty hard, I don't how she is considered a good role model when her first instinct is to act like a brat when things don't go her way or someone says something she doesn't like. Welcome to life sweetheart, it is as if she is a 11 year old in the body of a 20 year old.
May I remind you it's a job for songwriters to write songs about their lives. "Meaningless lyrics"? How many Taylor Swift songs have you heard? Let me remind you that there are more than a hundred of them. Ronan is about a boy who died from cancer and the proceed of the song goes to an anti-cancer organization. And telling her to stop writing songs about critiques that critize her PERSONAL life and HER carrer is like telling someone don't swim when inside an ocean. She was and always still is a role model to her fans because of her generosity, her kindness and how she took notice and care for her fans. She put up great shows great performances great songs (ps I cant stop listening to them, theyre addictive) and thats all enough for us swifties. We dont want anything or weigh in on her PERSONAL life because its her PERSONAL thing and neither shouldnt haters. Dont yall have another important things to worry about in your life than posting mean and disturbing things to celebrities that you dont even know what they're like in person. GROW THE FUCK UP
I so love her....I really do.....!