Over the past few days, celebrities and fans alike have shown their support for Kesha in all kinds of ways, after a judge denied her the right to produce albums without Dr. Luke, the producer who allegedly drugged and raped her. Be it by tweeting using the hashtag #freekesha, donating money to a GoFundMe page dedicated to buying off Kesha’s contract, or simply by donating 250000 dollars, if you’re Taylor Swift.
So while it may look like this tragedy is bringing people together, nothing could be more wrong. Numerous people commented on Taylor Swift’s silence on the topic in the days after the court case. While Swift proudly calls herself a feminist, she has repeatedly been accused of only speaking up on women’s issues that help her further her brand, whilst staying silent on other equally important topics. Demi Lovato seemed to be one of those ‘shading’ Taylor, sending out a number of tweets that fans immediately took to be about Swift.
I’m also ready for self-proclaimed feminists to start speaking out or taking action for women’s rights.
— Demi Lovato (@ddlovato) February 21, 2016
When fans posted screenshots of Demi’s tweets on instagram, talking about ‘rivalry’ between the two, Demi was quick to defend herself, saying that “Not everyone has 250k to just give to people”. She continued by saying “At least I speak up about s**t that’s uncomfortable to talk about rather than trying to be politically correct 24/7”. Lovato also denied there being any rivalry between the two, saying that she’s “tired of seeing women use ‘women empowerment’ and ‘feminism’ to further brands without actually being the ones that have uncomfortable conversations”. She concluded her comments by writing “At least I’m getting my hands dirty”.
While the instagram account that initially posted the screenshots is now private, Demi’s comments can still be read here.
Demi may have denied any rivalry between her and Taylor, there does seem to be some bad blood between the two (pardon the pun). However, we applaud both women for the ways in which they chose to support Kesha and we hope they’ll unite over this important issue.
What do you think? Did Demi cross a line? Should Taylor have done more to show her support for Kesha? Comment below or tweet us over at @CelebMix.