Selena Gomez’s entry into one of the most explosive feuds in recent memory has prompted its own fresh fallout after the singer urged those with a platform to use their voice for “something that f**king matters” - and was accused of hypocrisy.
The protracted quarrel between Taylor Swift and Kanye West took a dramatic turn on Monday after a phone call between Swift and West was shared on Kim Kardashian’s Snapchat without her permission. The call appeared to show Swift discussing the lyrics to the controversial song "Famous" and West asking her for her approval.
Swift, whose representative said the 10-time Grammy winner "cautioned him about releasing a song with such a strong misogynistic message" ahead of the song’s release, says she was unaware at the time the call was being recorded.
Gomez, 23, was one of a number of Swift's famous friends to react angrily after the video's release.
“There are more important things to talk about... Why can't people use their voice for something that f***ing matters?” Gomez wrote on Twitter in response.
Gomez was questioned about why she has not spoken up after the deaths of black men killed by police officers in the US or thrown her weight behind the Black Lives Matter movement which emerged in response to instances of police brutality.
“Good question! Why haven't you or Taylor not said a thing about #BlackLivesMatter or police brutality?” asked one user. Others highlighted a blog posted by Kardashian in the wake of the killings of Alton Sterling and Philano Castile, where the reality TV star urged people to support the Black Lives Matter movement.
A tweet appeared on her account in response but was quickly deleted: ”So that means if I hashtag something I save lives? No, I could give two f**s about 'sides.' You don’t know what I do."
The response sparked a wider backlash from some under the #selenagomezisoverparty hashtag which began trending on Monday. But Gomez's supporters pointed to her charity work in different countries for organisations such as UNICEF, as well as the backlash her Pray For Gaza Instagram post received which saw followers accusing her of "picking sides" in the conflict. Gomez also sang on the charity song "Hands" released after the Orlando LGBT nightclub shootings.
Swift has accused West of “character assassination” and strongly denies approving the line “I made that b**** famous.”
“Where is the video of Kanye telling me that he was going to call me 'that b****' in his song?,” Swift wrote on her Instagram account after the recording was posted.
“It doesn't exist because it never happened [...] While I wanted to be supportive of Kanye on the phone call, you cannot 'approve' a song you haven't heard. Being falsely painted as a liar when I was never given the full story or played any part of the song is character assassination,” she added.
A representative for Gomez did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
