R6: Twitter Feud - Swift and Minaj

Taylor Swift & Nicki Minaj's Twitter Feud

Media and communications technologies have revolutionized celebrity culture, broadening the scope of “participatory culture” by putting fans right in the front seat of celebrity activities.  The internet has “created a plethora of new outlets through which discourses of celebrity circulate,” bringing fans and celebrities closer together (Marwick and boyd, 2011). Twitter provides an excellent “snapshot” of the sociocultural sentiments at a specific point in time, which is the main reason that the Library of Congress has proposed creating a Twitter archive (although no progress has been made thus far and it is unlikely to be successful). Social media scholars Marwick and boyd argue that the popularity of Twitter stems predominantly from this clash between “frontstage” and “backstage” performances of celebrity personalities. The “uncertainty [of which] creates pleasure,” making Twitter a powerful medium for encouraging celebrity culture. Twitter has “provided the [user] with ‘insider’ access to celebrities,” giving the user a sense of being in the “backstage” (Marwick and boyd, 2011). The conflict between Taylor Swift and Nicki Minaj on Twitter back in the summer of 2015 was a famous case which earned a lot of media attention. This squabble is a great example of how the increased sense of “insiderness” found on social media sites like Twitter can “require celebrities to navigate carefully” (Marwick and boyd, 2011).

          In Summer 2015 Taylor Swift's song "Bad Blood" was nominated for MTV's best music video award. Swift's video went on to win best music video, while Nicki Minaj's "Anaconda" did not. Minaj set out the following Tweet, referencing "other" girls.

Swift took this as a personal attack, and responded promptly with the following message. Minaj then replied within five minutes to Swift's tweet!

 

Taylor Swift extends an olive branch, offering Minaj an invitation to co-star on any performance she ever does. Minaj still acts confused, blaming the media for making a big deal out of what she seems to consider a misunderstanding. 

Swift raises the white flag.

Minaj remains adamant she did not intend to antagonize Swift.
She blames the media for making embellished journalism.

Throughout this altercation, it remains unclear if Minaj was truly talking about Swift in her first tweet. She certainly denies it, though never giving a reason or saying who she was actually referring to. There is also the possibility that this entire confrontation has been completely staged as a publicity stunt. Indeed, the Twitter carbuncle was trending so strong that a few hours later, musician Bruno Mars jokingly attacked Ed Sheeran, saying he wants "in on this Twitter beef!" Sheeran got the joke and took it well. Actor Aaron Paul even joked about this, the tweets are shown below.

Swift and Minaj's Twitter feud is a great example of the highly enacted performances that define inter-celebrity communication on social media platforms. Minaj kept insisting that she had not intended to call Swift out, and Swift eventually apologized for misconstruing Minaj's Twitter remarks. The feud only lasted a few days, but it gained very widespread attention and is well known amongst both fanbases. Their tweets earned tens of thousands of likes and retweets, and attention not only from fans but other celebrities. Ultimately, the feud did not have a lasting tarnish on Swift and Minaj's relationship, as they ended up performing together at the VMA awards, as per Swift's promise. 


Works Cited

All Twitter images taken from: http://www.billboard.com/articles/columns/pop-shop/6641794/taylor-swift-nicki-minaj-twitter-argument-timeline

Marwick and boyd. "To see or be seen: celebrity practice on Twitter." 2011. http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/pdf/10.1177/1354856510394539