The latest epic drama between Kendrick Lamar and Drake could have made the brutal diss observe stylish once more, however within the pop realm, oblique shade-throwing appears to be the order of the day. When the conflict includes two of the most important pop stars alive, and their mighty fandoms are those decoding their insinuations, even delicate or unintentional slights can change into amplified to the purpose of absurdity.
But that additionally leaves the remainder of us asking what’s and isn’t actual. Are Billie Eilish and Taylor Swift actually feuding? From a sure angle, it actually appears like Eilish has spent the previous couple of months utilizing her promotional cycle for her new album, Hit Me Exhausting and Comfortable, to drop informal however pointed criticism at Swift. From one other angle, it looks like Swift could have retaliated in her personal Swiftian means — by releasing bonus editions for her new album, Tortured Poets Division, timed to compete with Eilish’s album launch.
Whereas Swift’s status for petty feuding is so well-known that she made an entire album about it, this combat appears completely out of character for the notably laid-back Eilish. But it appears to have been Eilish whose thinly veiled barbs towards Swift first gained discover and steadily fueled the hearth. Have we entered an period the place followers look to show every part into an epic rivalry — they usually’ll discover a method to do it, even when there’s nothing there in any respect?
Or is the Eilish/Taylor beef — with layered jibes resulting in battles waged by fandom foot troopers on social media feeds throughout the web — simply how pop stars combat nowadays?
The drama is all about which album tops the Billboard chart — nevertheless it’s additionally about shade
On the coronary heart of this feud is the Billboard album chart. Swift’s Poets has been on the high since its April 19 launch, and Swifties have a single-minded purpose of preserving it up there so long as doable. One of many methods artists gamify the charts in a extremely aggressive digital age is by releasing variant album editions — a trick Swift is well-known for utilizing. For Poets, she launched a typical album, then instantly expanded it to a double album with 30 songs, then all of the sudden dropped three extra shock, limited-time album variants on Could 17.
To Eilish followers, the timing of those three new album drops was sus: They landed the identical day as the discharge of Eilish’s personal new album, Hit Me. Swifties argued the timing was purely coincidental — only one extra means of boosting Swift’s purpose of preserving her album at No. 1 for so long as doable. For Eilish stans (who don’t have a collective identify, oddly sufficient), that rationalization fell flat: If the timing didn’t matter, why did Taylor step on Eilish’s launch date? Particularly since they had been restricted editions, which means followers had a slim window of time to purchase them — a window of direct competitors with Eilish.
For his or her half, Swift’s followers had been side-eying Eilish’s camp: They quickly realized Eilish’s supervisor, Danny Rukasin, had favored and retweeted (and swiftly deleted) a tweet implying that Swift had an extended historical past of deliberately “blocking” different artists’ paths to the highest of the chart by strategically dropping her personal releases. The calendar is finite, so Swift’s releases are more likely to be much less about spiting different artists and extra about restricted area, and Rukasin could have been motivated much less by this explicit gripe and extra by a normal dislike of Swift as an artist. Followers quickly dug up one other occasion when he shaded Swift on social media, which fed the flames of hostility between the 2 camps.
In the meantime, each artists waged a back-and-forth with competing bonus editions of latest tracks all through the week, in an effort to cinch the highest. Finally, Swift retained the No. 1 spot, with Eilish slotting in at No. 2.
In fact, all of this may simply have been chalked as much as unlucky coincidence, inevitable competitors, and heated feelings quite than beef — nothing that actually rises to the extent of a full-blown, two-sided battle.
However what fandom nowadays thrives on a lack of battle? It’s simple to see why neither fandom has backed off the drama. You don’t need to dig deep to seek out proof that the meat is likely to be actual, and that Swift might need meant to go head-to-head with Eilish. That’s as a result of Eilish may have been sitting on some longtime animosity towards Swift — a resentment that might have began with one other artist altogether.
If this feud exists, it might need began, not with Eilish or Swift, however with a person’s garden-variety sexism
To seek out the supply of this mess, we would have to leap again to 2022. Damon Albarn, the frontman of seminal British bands Blur and Gorillaz, kicked off the 12 months by bizarrely bashing Taylor Swift’s songwriting skill. In a January interview with the Los Angeles Occasions, Albarn first flatly claimed that Swift “doesn’t write her personal songs,” then doubled down by including that she doesn’t even co-write her personal songs. Since Taylor Swift’s main declare to fame is her songwriting skill, this was a really odd — if not outright misogynistic — hill for Albarn to randomly die on.
However inside nearly the identical breath, he took issues in a good weirder route, by evaluating Swift’s music to that of Billie Eilish and her brother Finneas O’Connell, with whom Eilish ceaselessly co-writes:
I’m not hating on anyone, I’m simply saying there’s a giant distinction between a songwriter and a songwriter who co-writes. Doesn’t imply that the result can’t be actually nice. … A extremely fascinating songwriter is Billie Eilish and her brother. I’m extra drawn to that than to Taylor Swift. It’s simply darker — much less endlessly upbeat. Far more minor and odd. I believe she’s distinctive.
For all we all know, the incident may have ended there — Albarn apologized to Swift after huge backlash, blaming the Occasions for “clickbait”-editing no matter he really stated.
Nevertheless, fast-forward a couple of months, and Billie Eilish herself took issues a step additional. Throughout her history-making gig at Coachella, the place she was the youngest headliner in historical past, Eilish introduced out Albarn for a shock visitor efficiency. This might have been a purely fannish gesture on Eilish’s half. Nevertheless, whereas Eilish was praising Albarn and the affect he had on her personal music, an unidentified male voice on a sizzling mic could possibly be heard on the live performance livestream joking, “We’re getting sued by Taylor Swift.”
On the time, Swifties leaned towards the perpetrator behind the voice being Eilish’s brother O’Connell. Followers appeared torn on whether or not or to not view this as deliberate shade towards Taylor on the a part of Eilish and O’Connell: In spite of everything, O’Connell had beforehand praised Swift’s songwriting as “inspiring,” and he attended her birthday celebration in 2021.
Nonetheless, it’s simple for issues to get twisted within the cutthroat sport of leisure, and we all know how Swift can maintain a grudge when she feels her artwork has been disrespected. And judging by a number of feedback Eilish has made within the promotional cycle for Hit Me Exhausting and Comfortable — feedback that actually appear to be directed at Swift — the vendetta may go each methods.
Eilish can’t appear to cease shading Swift — or are followers simply studying into issues?
On March 23, weeks earlier than Swift’s Poets launch, Billboard revealed an interview with Eilish during which she spoke of the “wasteful” apply of artists releasing vinyl albums primarily to garner extra album gross sales and safe longevity or larger gross sales rankings on the Billboard charts. Though all the interview was about Eilish’s broader efforts to advertise environmental sustainability, she was particularly sharp in her criticism of this (admittedly, sure, wasteful) apply:
I discover it actually irritating as any person who actually goes out of my method to be sustainable and do the very best that I can and attempt to contain everyone in my crew in being sustainable — after which it’s among the largest artists on this planet making f–king 40 totally different vinyl packages which have a special distinctive factor simply to get you to maintain shopping for extra. It’s so wasteful, and it’s irritating to me that we’re nonetheless at a degree the place you care that a lot about your numbers and also you care that a lot about getting cash — and it’s all of your favourite artists doing that sh-t.
Since, once more, it is a tactic for which Swift is known, followers learn all the sidebar as a swipe at Swift particularly. Eilish herself rapidly responded by way of Instagram and denied that she’d meant to slight any particular artist. “It will be so superior if folks would cease placing phrases into my mouth,” she reportedly wrote. “I wasn’t singling anybody out.”
If this had been a one-off assertion, it could in all probability have been simpler for followers to consider Eilish. As a substitute, this was only the start of a string of moments when Eilish’s normal complaints may be learn as particular criticism of Taylor Swift. It’s price noting that every of those subsequent interviews got here after Swift’s Could 17 “block” of Eilish’s album, so it’s additionally doable that what began out as pure coincidence on Eilish’s half rapidly grew to become private.
In a Could 21 interview for Apple Music, Eilish drew nonetheless extra consideration for remarks that appeared to shade overtly autobiographical songwriting — you understand, like the sort Swift is once more infamous for.
“I actually needed the songs to not be like, ‘Oh, I do know what that’s about,’” Eilish says.
I believe that we dwell in such a world the place everybody is aware of every part … Everyone seems to be conscious of the meat that occurred and conscious of the those who don’t like one another and conscious of this and that.
Folks put songs out, particularly within the pop world — and I’m not saying there’s something mistaken with it essentially, nevertheless it’s simply, we dwell in a world of, like, any person places a tune out and everybody’s like, ‘So that is who that is about and that is all the story of what occurred,’ and it’s like, it doesn’t even give the listener an opportunity to interpret it how they need to interpret it and the way they naturally hear it. And that I discover actually irritating. I don’t need to hear a tune that I’m like, ‘Ooh, my god’ — each single lyric, I’m like, ‘Oh, my god, that is about that individual.’
At this level, her brother, O’Connell, chimes in, agreeing, “No, it may be gross … I don’t take heed to ‘The Luckiest’ by Ben Folds and take into consideration his spouse. I take into consideration who I’m in love with.”
Taken by itself, that is all fairly innocuous kvetching concerning the inventive course of. However taken as a part of an ongoing sample of the siblings subtly shading Swift, her songwriting, and her manufacturing course of, it feels much more damning.
Oh, after which Eilish apparently added Swift-style performances to the guidelines of issues she doesn’t like.
It’s no secret {that a} movie star rivalry like this one drives gross sales. However there’s one thing irritating concerning the ephemeral nature of this one.
Final 12 months, Eilish known as each Swift and Beyoncé “untouchable superstars” within the LA Occasions, referencing their epic stadium reveals, which might every run three hours or extra. “The truth that they will placed on a present that lengthy, and it’s stuffed with so many unimaginable moments, is de facto wonderful,” she stated. On the time she sounded admiring, not confrontational.
Following the album launch conflict, nonetheless, her tone modified dramatically. In a Could 23 broadcast on social radio platform Stationhead, Eilish acknowledged, “I’m not doing a three-hour present. That’s actually psychotic. No one desires that. I don’t need that … I don’t even need that as a fan. My favourite artist on this planet, I’m not making an attempt to listen to them for 3 hours.” As soon as once more, Swifties rushed to allege that Eilish was shading Swift particularly (and Beyoncé, however the Hive appears much less pressed).
We’ve by no means recognized Eilish to overtly antagonize Swift earlier than, and certainly in 2019 she thanked Swift for “caring for [her]” by means of her music when she was a baby. But this wouldn’t be the primary time a youthful feminine artist discovered herself in opposition to Swift. Simply have a look at Olivia Rodrigo, who borrowed liberally from Swift as a key affect in her music. Swift embraced the younger singer, till the pair had a rumored falling-out over the problem of tune credit. That kerfuffle could or could not have led Rodrigo to burn Swift within the scathing 2022 tune “Vampire,” during which she depicts the titular fang-bearer as a considerably older determine who exploits the singer’s youth and naivete.
Have we talked about Rodrigo and Eilish are good mates? And that Eilish has stated she feels “very protecting” of her? Certainly, in a Could 22 interview with Stephen Colbert to advertise her new album, Eilish riffed poetically concerning the want for younger artists to have the liberty to repeat different artists whereas they’re discovering their very own model. “Inspiration goes to show into extra inspiration goes to show into extra inspiration,” she stated. Although Eilish was ostensibly speaking about her personal vocal improvement, some gawkers watching the unfolding beef interpreted it as Eilish commenting on the Swift-Rodrigo feud.
It is sensible; there’s some hypothesis that Swift tapped Sabrina Carpenter to open for her “Eras” tour partly as a result of Carpenter and Rodrigo have a longstanding enmity over a messy love triangle. Rodrigo likewise has been teasing an upcoming remix of “Vampire” as a collaboration with Lana Del Rey — who’s allegedly presently on the outs with Swift. Different celebrities additionally appear to be taking sides within the dispute. Sza, who by the way is among the artists whose album Swift was beforehand accused of making an attempt to “block,” had beforehand denied there was ever any beef between the 2. She was just lately noticed “liking” an Instagram submit dinging Eilish for her excessive live performance costs and brief efficiency occasions — an obvious delicate shade on behalf of Swift.
For her half, Swift has but to touch upon the continued battle between her fandom and Eilish’s — although her PR crew’s Twitter account did make a submit on Could 25 referencing the road “try to come for my job” from Swift’s tune “I Can Do It With a Damaged Coronary heart” — a submit that many followers interpreted as a diss towards Eilish for being unable to swipe the No. 1 chart rating from Swift.
Is any of this actual or is all of it only a manufactured face-off? It’s laborious to inform. However the animosity has actually pushed consideration and renewed vitality towards each artists. In the midst of the feud, Swift’s album Midnights reportedly grew to become the quickest album by a lady in historical past to succeed in a whopping 9 billion streams on Spotify. In the meantime, Eilish’s album lead, the racy bop “Lunch,” reportedly grew to become her quickest single ever to succeed in 100 million Spotify streams.
It’s no secret {that a} movie star rivalry like this one drives gross sales. However there’s one thing irritating concerning the ephemeral nature of this one. On the one hand, there’s loads of believable deniability round every of the statements from Eilish that followers are up in arms about. On the opposite, the very fact there are so many statements throughout an energetic press tour implies Eilish isn’t enjoying. She additionally hasn’t bothered to make clear that she’s not speaking about Swift. (Vox has reached out to each camps for remark.)
When hip-hop artists create diss tracks, the overall sentiment is that the gripes create good music, and the music is what issues. We’ll undoubtedly hear Swift’s facet of this newest dispute in her subsequent album. However the vacuum of actual details about what’s occurring right here has left a spot that followers have chosen to fill with loads of finger-pointing and side-taking. It’s a well-known routine for anybody who’s hung out round stan tradition, however the drama detracts from the accomplishments of each artists. It’s laborious to really feel served by this combat the way in which, for instance, Kendrick’s beef with Drake doubled as a commentary on authenticity in hip-hop tradition. If Eilish actually does assume Swift’s songs are too literal, her live shows too lengthy, her launch technique too wasteful, and her feuds too petty, there should be higher methods to air these grievances.
Maybe she ought to write a tune about it.
