If you have access to any source of media, you have most likely heard the twisted tale of the narrative leading up to Kanye West’s hit single “Famous” and the unfortunate aftermath.
A lot of things in this world don’t make sense, but I am still shocked and appalled at the general consensus that my favorite song-writer and role model is at fault for the degrading things said about her.
In "Famous," Kanye sings “For all my Southside n----- that know me best/ I feel like me and Taylor might still have sex/ Why? I made that b---- famous.”
Those are the words that made me lose any little shred of respect I had for the rapper that calls himself Kanye West or “Yeezus” to satisfy his disgustingly large god-complex. He genuinely thinks he is the modern equivalent of Jesus, as sited in tracks such as “I am God” or his remake of the Bible, The Book of Yeezus, in which he replaced every mention of God with his own name.
So how can the man who jumped up on stage and stole the mic from a 19-year-old singer-songwriter accepting her first Video Music Award, and declared she didn’t deserve it, become the good guy in this story, seven years later? It happened when his wife, Kim Kardashian, who is famous for a sex-tape and having a father who defended OJ Simpson in court, released a video of an illegally-recorded phone call in which a shocked Swift awkwardly approved most of these words.
She said it was okay because that was his perspective, and as a fellow writer, she knows perspective is everything. Swift did, however, make it clear that he did not make her famous, stating that her record Fearless had already sold 20-million copies by that point in 2009. She also did not approve West calling her “that b----” as she made clear in a post released to her Twitter and Instagram accounts.
Kardashian responded with "intelligent" insight — as always — stating that she doesn’t know why Swift would be offended by the term because he has called her that too. Kardashian reasoned that that’s just how rappers speak. Kardashian also appears to not be offended that he is married with a child and still writing about girls he wants to bang.
For the record, Swift never denied the phone call. The media statement she issued simply said she was not made aware of the phrase “That b----,” so no lies were told, contrary to popular belief.
Yes, maybe it was wrong of Swift to say she was fine with his perspective, and then publicly insult West for trying to claim her fame, but it was nowhere near as wrong as what he did, and that Grammy Awards acceptance speech will forever be one of my favorite things in the world, because it was the first time that I have seen my hero truly take credit for her achievements.
“And as the only woman ever to win Album of The Year at the Grammys twice, I wanna say to all the young women out there, that there are going to be people along the way who try to take credit for your accomplishments, or your fame, but if you just focus on the work, and you don’t let these people sidetrack you, someday when you get where you’re going, you’ll look around and you will know that it was you and the people who love you that put you there, and that will be the greatest feeling in the world," said Swift.
That just might be the best comeback ever.
The fact of the matter is that Swift is one of those rare popstars that actually does her own heavy-lifting and deserves everything she has. She was hired to write and record professionally as the first artist on a new label, which is now the biggest label in country music, Big Machine Records, at age 14.
Twelve years later, Swift is still on the same label, run by Scott Borchetta, who follows me on Instagram, no big deal (actually low-key the most exciting thing ever to happen in my life). She has ten Grammys and is the only woman ever to sell over a million copies of three consecutive albums, in the first week of their release.
She sells albums like it’s the ‘60s British Invasion because she writes about things we have all suffered through. If you have only experienced the Max Martin produced, pop-hit version of Taylor Swift, I strongly encourage you to look up “Fifteen” or “All Too Well” which she penned independently, for those of you that see her as a pretty face with a team of writers. If you believe that “she only writes about boys” I challenge you to give “Ronan” a listen; she wrote it about a 3-year-old boy that died of cancer and donated all of the profits to medical research. If you’ve ever had your heart broken, I dare you to listen to “Last Kiss” and not cry.
This woman got me through middle school and high school. She’s been there from my first time being bullied in middle school to my first real breakup, right before college, and all of the messes in between. “Mine” makes even someone as cynical as me believe in love, and “Change” made me believe in myself, when I needed it the most. She is the reason that I want to be a writer; once I saw the power words can have, I was hooked. She was there for me on days when no one else was, and I will defend her to the death. So will the rest of the "Swifties", Taylor’s fan army, judging by the hashtag we got trending.
"#IStandByTaylor" was a cool way for fans to share how much Taylor has helped them, and why they remain loyal.
That being said, her success has made her the butt of countless jokes. Swift does not get into much trouble, so the haters had to be a little bit creative. Her public persona turned into that of a psychotic serial-dater who writes break-up songs for revenge.
Forget the fact that every songwriter ever to live writes about relationships. Forget the fact that she is a beautiful woman in her twenties who has dated two men in the past four years, not thirty. As if the sexist public-shaming weren’t enough, she became the fake, evil witch of Kanye West’s less-than-sane imagination.
I don’t know why one of the least compassionate people on the planet and a woman famous for her body have credibility over a kind-hearted, hard-working artist that built a career off of nothing but her own intellect and guitar, but I guess that’s just how it’s going to be.
I know that West is a skilled artist and he’s not going anywhere. I know that degrading woman is not only accepted, but often celebrated in rap music. I know that there’s nothing an 18-year-old Journalism student can do to stop it, but some things just need to be said, no matter what the forum.
So go ahead and call Taylor Swift fake, talentless and a liar. Go ahead and say that you’re sick of her “playing the victim” and “acting so innocent.” Go ahead and complain about how she won’t just shut up, but keep in mind that it’s people like her that are changing the world.
Halle Weber is a freshman studying journalism with a focus in news and information at Ohio University. What is your favorite T-Swift song? Let Halle know by emailing or tweeting her at hw422715@ohio.edu or @HalleWeber13 respectively.
