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- Billboard used a clip from Ye’s 2016 music video “Famous” to recap Taylor Swift’s career.
- The clip featured a nude wax figure of Swift lying in bed with Ye and other celebrities.
- After backlash from fans, Billboard apologized for including it.
Over the past few months, Billboard has revealed its rankings for the best pop artists of the 21st century. On Wednesday, Billboard announced that the No. 2 spot belongs to Taylor Swift and published an Instagram video recapping her career.
While some Swifties were disappointed to see her in second place, the real backlash against Billboard involved a short clip within the video.
Referencing a yearslong feud between Swift, Ye (formerly known as Kanye West), and Kim Kardashian, the clip featured the infamous wax figure of Swift in Ye’s 2016 music video “Famous.” In it, Swift’s figure is nude and lying in bed next to Ye and other celebrities.
The backlash from fans prompted Billboard to remove the clip from its video and apologize to Swift on Wednesday.
The inclusion of the clip, which critics have described as “revenge porn,” prompted fierce criticism on social media. On X, Swifties started the hashtag #BillboardIsOverParty, a nod to #TaylorSwiftIsOverParty in 2016 (also connected to “Famous.”)
‘Famous’ ignited Swift and Ye’s ongoing feud
In 2016, Ye released “Famous,” which featured the lyric, “I feel like me and Taylor might still have sex / Why? I made that bitch famous.” The lyric referenced the 2009 MTV Video Music Awards when Ye stormed the stage and said Beyoncé should have won the Best Female Video award instead of Swift. The “Famous” music video included the naked figure of Swift.
After Swift disputed Ye’s claim that she approved the lyric, Kardashian (at the time married to Ye) posted short clips of a phone call between Swift and Ye, showing Swift approving of the line “I feel like Taylor Swift might owe me sex.”
Swift was called a snake on social media, and the incident partly inspired her 2017 album, “Reputation.”
The feud was reignited a few times: first in 2020 when a longer clip of the phone call revealed Swift being opposed to Ye using the word “bitch.” The next time was in 2024 when Swift released several tracks about Ye and Kardashian in “The Tortured Poets Department.”
Swifties united with other fans
Many Swifties were angered by Billboard using the clip. X user @ryoqko referred to the move as “Just nasty, disrespectful and unprofessional.”
Fans of other top artists, such as Ariana Grande, Britney Spears, and Nicki Minaj, also tweeted at and about Billboard.
Swift’s fan base has a history of banding together for a cause. When Ye surpassed Swift as Spotify’s top global artist, Swifties collectively streamed Beyoncé’s “TEXAS HOLD ‘EM” to push Ye out of the No. 1 spot.
