Swift, 34, and the rapper who now goes by Ye, 46, have been embroiled in on-again, off-again drama ever since 2009 when he stormed the MTV VMAs stage to snatch the microphone out of her hands and declared Beyoncé should have won for Best Video by a Female Artist instead.
Later, Ye namechecked Swift in his song “Famous,” referring to her in a sexual way and even appeared to be sleeping next to a mannequin that resembled her for the music video.
Kayne West (L) jumps onstage as Taylor Swift accepts her award for the “Best Female Video” award during the 2009 MTV Video Music Award on September 13, 2009 in New York City. The pair have been engaged in an ongoing feud ever since.
JEFF KRAVITZ/WIREIMAGE
He and ex-wife Kim Kardashian claimed Swift gave the green light for the lyrics, which she denied for years and was later vindicated when a transcript of their call leaked in 2020.
Since then, the musicians have been on very diverging paths. Ye has faced a number of controversies including being banned on Twitter for antisemitic comments. He was dropped from a number of lucrative partnerships, including his work with Adidas on his Yeezy clothing line.
Swift on the other hand has had a stellar 2023, including a world-record breaking world tour which grossed more than $1 billion and single-handedly raised the U.S. economy, according to the Federal Reserve.
A concert movie of her Eras tour broke box office records and she has dominated the Billboard album charts all year. On top of all that, she began dating Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce.
In 2023, Swift saw her personal net worth more than double to $1.1 billion, while Ye saw his fall from billionaire status to $400 million, according to Forbes.
This fact was pointed out by a Swift fan account on X, formerly Twitter, which shared a screenshot of their personal fortunes side by side.
“Taylor Swift can now buy Kanye West and still have $700 million for herself,” the caption read. A fact check below the post clarified that Swift could not figuratively buy Ye as slavery was abolished in the U.S. in 1865.
The post was also shared to Facebook where people shared their reactions.
“Karma!” wrote one person.
Another added: “Touche Kanye.”
Despite Ye falling off Forbes’ billionaire list in 2022, he still remained one of the top five entertainers of that year.
Some of his other recent controversies included saying in a 2018 interview with TMZ that “slavery was a choice.” Then in 2020 he alleged George Floyd, the Black man murdered at the hands of police, sparking the global Black Lives Matter, actually “died from fentanyl.”
At a 2022 Yeezy fashion show, Ye and conservative commentator Candace Owens, along with the catwalk models, wore T-shirts with the slogan “White Lives Matter.” The Anti-Defamation League, a group which combats hate, categorizes the phrase as a “hate slogan” used by white supremacist groups.
Later that year, the rapper made a slew of antisemitic comments, including tweeting that he wanted to go “defcon 3” on Jewish people and that he loved Nazi leader Adolf Hitler. He made the comments about Hitler on conspiracy theorist Alex Jones’ podcast, where he also declared that “Nazis did good things.”
The bizarre reason why Taylor Swift is only performing in Singapore and no other southeast Asian countries on her Eras tour
Taylor Swift fans are gearing up for the US pop megastar’s shows in Singapore next month.
The 34-year-old Cruel Summer songstress was awarded a grant to perform in the city-state in March, headlining six sold-out shows on the island country.
But it will be her only stop in Southeast Asia, due to one interesting reason.
Thai Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin told a business forum in February that Singapore had paid Swift approximately 100 million baht (AUD$4.2million) per show, allegedly on condition that Singapore would be Swift’s only show in Southeast Asia.
‘[AEG] didn’t tell me the exact figure but they said the Singapore government offers subsidies of between $3million and $4.6million,’ Srettha said publicly at a business forum in Bangkok.
Taylor Swift was allegedly paid millions so that Singapore would be her only show in Southeast Asia
‘But the Singaporean government is clever. They told [organisers] not to hold any other shows in [south-east] Asia.’
The highly-anticipated shows will be a potential boon to the economy.
Singapore’s tourism board and culture ministry did not disclose the amount of the grant, but referred to the economic benefits brought by Swift’s concerts around the world due to her popularity in a statement on Tuesday.
They said the ministry had worked with concert promoter AEG Presents to get Swift to perform in Singapore.
According to government authorities, the 34-year-old pop star is set to perform six sold-out shows on the island country in March. Pictured peforming in Melbourne in February
Swift is performing at Singapore’s National Stadium from March 2 to March 9
Over 300,000 tickets were sold to fans who queued overnight in the blistering tropical heat
‘It is likely to generate significant benefits to the Singapore economy, especially to tourism activities such as hospitality, retail, travel and dining, as has happened in other cities in which Taylor Swift has performed,’ they said.
Singapore has seen a boom in concerts since pandemic lockdowns ended, with big names like Blackpink, Coldplay and Ed Sheeran playing sold-out shows.
The Singapore government has not commented on the exclusivity clause, though AEG has said Swift’s sole concert stop in Southeast Asia will be on the island nation, with VIP tickets going for S$1,228 (AUD$1,395).
In the broader Asian continent, Swift also performed in Tokyo, earlier in February.
Her Singapore concerts will span March 2 to March 9.
Over 300,000 tickets were sold to fans who queued overnight in the blistering tropical heat.
