Taylor Swift knows the public’s demand for female rivalry all too well. Still, when it comes to rumors of a competition between her and Beyoncé, the singer says there’s nothing to see but inspiration, support and a lucrative future.
On Dec. 6, Swift was named Time magazine’s Person of the Year. In her profile for the annual issue, the “Cruel Summer” singer reflected on the success of her “Eras Tour,” as well as her love life. She also shared why Beyoncé’s “Renaissance World Tour,” which took place last summer in tandem with Swift’s, did not inspire the strife that many have been rooting in favor of for years.
“There were so many stadium tours this summer, but the only ones that were compared were me and Beyoncé,” the 33-year-old told Time. “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.”
For Swift, the primary conversation to be had about her dynamic with the “Lemonade” singer is how the latter has paved the way for monumental changes for women in the music industry.
“She’s the most precious gem of a person—warm and open and funny,” she added. “And she’s such a great disrupter of music-industry norms. She taught every artist how to flip the table and challenge archaic business practices.”
The singer also anticipated how she, Beyonce and future female titans of the music industry will be able to bring about more inspired eras for the music industry. Swift implied that this is especially true because of their desire to take back control over the narrative of what it means to be a woman in a world primarily led by men.
“Women have been fed the message that what we naturally gravitate toward... Girlhood, feelings, love, breakups, analyzing those feelings, talking about them nonstop, glitter, sequins! We’ve been taught that those things are more frivolous than the things that stereotypically gendered men gravitate toward...”
Now more than ever, Swift says she’s optimistic that the ongoing demand for female points of view held by artists like herself and Beyoncé will continue to shake up their influence on the music industry.
“Feminine ideas becoming lucrative means that more female art will get made,” the singer said. “It’s extremely heartening.”
