Taylor Swift, Katy Perry
The feud between Taylor Swift and Katy Perry, photographed during the Grammy Awards in Beverly Hills, California, on January 30, 2010, is alive and well. Getty Images

Taylor Swift and Katy Perry’s long standing feud just took an interesting turn. Just as the “Chained To the Rhythm” singer prepared to release her latest album, her friend-turned-enemy decided to return to streaming services.

Fans had no doubt that re-adding her entire music catalog to Spotify and other such services was calculated on Swift’s part. Many thought she was trying to eclipse the release of Perry’s fifth album — and succeeded. At one point, Swift’s name was trending higher than Perry’s album hashtag, which some fans reveled in.

Read: Katy Perry Blames Taylor Swift Feud On ‘Bad Blood’ Singer

Perry may have fanned the flames of her rift with Swift, 27, on Wednesday, in a telling interview with NME. The singer opened up about their beef, telling the publication she felt the “Blank Space” singer repeatedly tried “to assassinate my character.” She said she’s tried to be the bigger person, but refuses to be a “pushover.”

“I mean, I’m not Buddha — things irritate me,” she said. “I wish that I could turn the other cheek every single time, but I’m also not a pushover, you know? Especially when someone tries to assassinate my character with little girls. That’s so messed up!”

Prior to her interview, she’s believed to have taken a shot at Swift in her latest single “Swish Swish.” She referenced a 2014 tweet of hers saying, “Don’t need opinions from a shellfish or a sheep. Don’t you come for me.” She hasn’t confirmed that the line was about Swift, but many fans seem to think it’s obvious.

The song seems like a direct response to “Bad Blood,” which is about Perry. Swift sought help from Max Martin, a longtime collaborator of Perry’s, in writing the song. Martin is not thought to have been aware that Swift’s song was about Perry at the time.

“I can’t speak for [Max], but he didn’t know [who ‘Bad Blood’ was about],” she explained. “I’m not supposed to tell him what he can and can’t do. I’m very fair; I’m super-duper fair and I’m not one of those people who’s like, ‘You can’t do that because I don’t like that person.’ Just, like, you do you, make your own choices...I’m not his mother.”

The drama between Swift and Perry is thought to be directly linked to John Mayer. Swift dated the “Gravity” singer in 2009, breaking up with him nearly a year later. Perry and the Hollywood playboy began dating in 2012, which reportedly didn’t sit well with Swift.

Additionally, Swift reportedly lost three backup dancers to Perry. She’s said to have been furious, especially because it happened while she was touring. TMZ reported that the dancers worked for Perry prior.

“They wanted a 30-day out, and we’re told it’s because they were just waiting for Katy to go back on tour,” TMZ reported in 2014.

Swift tells a slightly different version of why she and Perry are at odds. In a 2014 interview with Rolling Stone, she claimed “it wasn’t even about a guy!” The 10-time Grammy award winner claimed that Perry had something to do with the dancers leaving her tour.

Read: Taylor Swift Dating Joe Alwyn?

“She did something so horrible,” Swift explained. “I was like, ‘Oh, we’re just straight up enemies.’ And it wasn’t even about a guy! It had to do with business...She basically tried to sabotage an entire arena tour. She tried to hire a bunch of people out from under me.”

As the interview began circulating, Perry, 32, clapped back on Twitter. She compared Swift to the “Mean Girls” character Regina George. Perry also suggested Swift was pretending to be nice for her public persona.

RELATED STORIES
Spotify