Taylor Swift, honored as Time’s 2023 Person of the Year, opened up about her deep friendship with Beyoncé, calling her the most precious gem of a person.
Taylor Swift and Beyonce (via Getty Images and Instagram)
Key Highlight
Taylor Swift describes Beyoncé as the most precious gem of a person citing her warmth and kindness
Both artists have publicly supported each other’s projects, attending each other’s premieres
Taylor Swift, the pop sensation, was named Time’s 2023 Person of the Year. In an exclusive cover interview, she openly shared about her bond with fellow superstar Beyoncé.
The singer referred to Beyoncé as the “most precious gem of a person.” Swift talked about the warmth, humor, and kindness that define their friendship. Swift’s friendship came to light when she attended the London premiere of Beyoncé’s concert film, Renaissance: A Film By Beyoncé.
In her interview, Swift shared her love for Beyoncé, citing how she challenges industry norms. “She’s such a great disrupter of music-industry norms,” Taylor Swift stated.
“She taught every artist how to flip the table and challenge archaic business practices.” This acknowledgment shows Swift’s huge respect for Beyoncé’s contributions to the music industry.
Despite their mutual admiration, Swift expressed frustration with the media’s tendency to put their tours against one another. Both artists had highly successful stadium tours, but only their performances seemed to attract comparisons. “There were so many stadium tours this summer, but the only ones that were compared were me and Beyoncé,” she said.
She pointed out that the media and fan culture can fuel competitiveness among women in the music industry. She said that clearly it’s very lucrative for the media and stan culture to pit two women against each other, even when those two artists in question refuse to participate in that discussion.
Swift celebrated the success of both her and Beyoncé’s tours, seeing it as a victory for women in the industry. She highlighted the cultural effect of their live shows as well as the success of Greta Gerwig’s Barbie, calling the summer as a three-part summer of feminine extravaganza.
Swift explains we’ve been taught that things women gravitate towards are more frivolous than the things that stereotypically gendered men gravitate toward. She also added that if we look at it from the most cynical perspective, feminine ideas becoming profitable means more female art will be created and it’s incredibly encouraging.
Swift and Beyoncé’s friendship has received public approval in recent months. Beyoncé showed her support for Swift during the Los Angeles premiere of The Eras Tour Film in October. Swift reciprocated by attending Beyoncé’s concert film premiere in November.
Swift expressed her gratitude for Beyoncé’s influence in an Instagram post, writing that she is so thankful she will never know what her life would’ve been like without Beyonce’s influence. She has taught her and every other artist to flout the boundaries and reject industry norms.
