When Kanye West premiered his new album The Life of Pablo at Madison Square Garden yesterday afternoon, one line seemed to jump out of the stadium and onto computer screens around the world. It's part of "Famous," a clanging, dense new track: "I feel like me and Taylor might still have sex / I made that bitch famous." It's a reference to Taylor Swift, of course, and their long-running, complicated relationship. He interrupted her at the 2009 MTV Video Music Awards! She wrote a song about it! They reconciled in public last year! It's all a little messy, and it's getting much worse.
It's unclear whether or not Swift had a chance to look at the lyric before West released the song, and reports are conflicting. TMZ says she reviewed it and approved it; The New York Times' music critic Jon Caramanica shared a statement from Swift's spokesperson that condemned the misogyny. West himself is taking to Twitter right now to defend the song and argue on behalf of "real artists," whatever that means. It should be noted that this is just the latest in a string of misogynistic mishaps that have tarred the release of The Life of Pablo. In a similar Twitter spat with Wiz Khalifa a few weeks ago, West went out of his way to criticize ex-girlfriend Amber Rose, the model and activist who has a child with Khalifa; earlier this week, he went on the record defending Bill Cosby's innocence on the same platform. Here's Kanye's tweeted statement in full.
I did not diss Taylor Swift and I’ve never dissed her…
— KANYE WEST (@kanyewest) February 12, 2016
First thing is I’m an artist and as an artist I will express how I feel with no censorship
— KANYE WEST (@kanyewest) February 12, 2016
2nd thing I asked my wife for her blessings and she was cool with it
— KANYE WEST (@kanyewest) February 12, 2016
4th Bitch is an endearing term in hip hop like the word Nigga
— KANYE WEST (@kanyewest) February 12, 2016
5th thing I’m not even gone take credit for the idea… it’s actually something Taylor came up with …
— KANYE WEST (@kanyewest) February 12, 2016
She was having dinner with one of our friends who’s name I will keep out of this and she told him
— KANYE WEST (@kanyewest) February 12, 2016
I can’t be mad at Kanye because he made me famous! #FACTS
— KANYE WEST (@kanyewest) February 12, 2016
6th Stop trying to demonize real artist Stop trying to compromise art
— KANYE WEST (@kanyewest) February 12, 2016
That’s why music is so fucking watered down right now I miss that DMX feeling
— KANYE WEST (@kanyewest) February 12, 2016
7th I miss that feeling so that’s what I want to help restore
— KANYE WEST (@kanyewest) February 12, 2016
8th They want to control us with money and perception and mute the culture
— KANYE WEST (@kanyewest) February 12, 2016
but you can see at Madison Square Garden that you can stop us
— KANYE WEST (@kanyewest) February 12, 2016
9th It felt like a seen from The Warriors ALL GODS ALL GODS ALL GODS in the buildin
— KANYE WEST (@kanyewest) February 12, 2016
not just the famous people there but the kids the moms the dads the families that came to share this moment with us
— KANYE WEST (@kanyewest) February 12, 2016