Taylor Swift Takes Aim at Kim Kardashian in These Eyebrow-Raising “Tortured Poets Department” Tracks
It doesn't look like Taylor Swift plans on burying the hatchet with Kim Kardashian any time soon.
The singer revived the old rivalry in “thanK you aIMee” and “Cassandra,” two bonus tracks included in today's 2 a.m. anthology drop of The Tortured Poets Department. The former song even appears to spell out Kardashian's first name with the title's unconventional capitalization.
The feud between the two A-listers allegedly began in 2016 after Kardashian's then-husband, Kanye West, released the song “Famous,” which included explicit lyrics about Swift that he claimed she had approved beforehand: “I feel like me and Taylor might still have sex / Why? I made that bitch famous.”
When Swift publicly denied approving the line, Kardashian released an edited video tape of an alleged phone call between West and Swift, in which the singer appears to consent to the controversial lyric. As Swifties may recall, the backlash against her was immediate and brutal, leading Swift to retreat from the public eye and, later, release her vengeful sixth studio album, Reputation.
In “thanK you aIMee,” the singer compares Kardashian to “a bronze spray-tanned statue” and a school bully who “threatens to push me down the stairs.” She also accuses the reality TV mogul of publicly ridiculing her in the aftermath of the 2016 scandal by “[writing] headlines” and “laughing at each baby step I'd take.” Despite the uphill battle, Swift notes that the adversity made her stronger: “I wrote a thousand songs that you find uncool / I built a legacy which you can't undo / But when I count the scars, there's a moment of truth / That there wouldn't be this, if there hadn't been you.” She also admits to hiding Kardashian's real identity in the song: “And so I changed your name, and any real defining clues / And one day, your kid comes home singin' / A song that only us two is gonna know is about you.”
“Cassandra” plays out a similar theme of betrayal and defamation, with Swift describing her own exoneration “when the truth comes out.” The song's namesake most likely refers to the Greek myth of Cassandra, a priestess with the power to foresee disasters but whose prophecies aren't believed. Swift compares herself to Cassandra, singing, “They set my life in flames, I regret to say / Do you believe me now?” She also calls out the hypocrisy of a family that touts Christian values while simultaneously pursuing greed: “The family, the pure greed, the Christian chorus line / They all said nothing / Blood's thick but nothing like a payroll / Bet they never spared a prayer for my soul / You can mark my words that I said it first / In a morning warning, no one heard.”
Besides resurrecting the feud with Kardashian, both songs set the scene for the highly-anticipated release of Reputation (Taylor's Version). In particular, “Cassandra” invokes the theme of “snakes,” a motif that prominently appears in Reputation.
Scroll ahead to listen to both tracks and read the full lyrics.
“thanK you aIMee”
When I picture my hometown
There's a bronze spray-tanned statue of you
And a plaque underneath it
That threatens to push me down the stairs, at our school
And it was always the same searing pain
But I dreamed that one day, I could say
All that time you were throwin' punches, I was buildin' somethin'
And I can't forgive the way you made me feel
Screamed "Fuck you, Aimee" to the night sky, as the blood was gushin'
But I can't forget the way you made me heal
And it wasn't a fair fight, or a clean kill
Each time that Aimee stomped across my gravе
And then she wrote hеadlines
In the local paper, laughing at each baby step I'd take
And it was always the same searing pain
But I prayed that one day, I could say
All that time you were throwin' punches, I was buildin' somethin'
And I couldn't wait to show you it was real
Screamed "Fuck you, Aimee" to the night sky, as the blood was gushin'
But I can't forget the way you made me heal
Everyone knows that my mother is a saintly woman
But she used to say she wished that you were dead
I pushed each boulder up the hill
Your words are still just ringing in my head, ringing in my head
I wrote a thousand songs that you find uncool
I built a legacy which you can't undo
But when I count the scars, there's a moment of truth
That there wouldn't be this, if there hadn't been you
And maybe you've reframed it
And in your mind, you never beat my spirit black and blue
I don't think you've changed much
And so I changed your name, and any real defining clues
And one day, your kid comes home singin'
A song that only us two is gonna know is about you, 'cause—
All that time you were throwin' punches, it was all for nothin'
And our town, it looks so small, from way up here
Screamed "Thank you, Aimee" to the night sky, and the stars are stunnin'
'Cause I can't forget the way you made me heal
Everyone knows that my mother is a saintly woman
But she used to say she wished that you were dead
So I pushed each boulder up that hill
Your words were still just ringin' in my head, ringin' in my head
Thank you, Aimee
Thank you, Aimee
“Cassandra”
I was in my new house placing daydreams
Patching up the crack along the wall
I pass it and lose track of what I'm saying
'Cause that's where I was when I got the call
When the first stone's thrown, they're screaming
In the streets, there's a raging riot
When it's "Burn the bitch," they're shrieking
When the truth comes out, it's quiet
So, they killed Cassandra first 'cause she feared the worst
And tried to tell the town
So, they filled my cell with snakes, I regret to say
Do you believe me now?
I was in my tower weaving nightmares
Twisting all my smiles into snarls
They say, "What doesn't kill you makes you aware"
What happens if it becomes who you are?
So, they killed Cassandra first 'cause she feared the worst
And tried to tell the town
So, they set my life in flames, I regret to say
Do you believe me now?
They knew, they knew, they knew the whole time
That I was onto something
The family, the pure greed, the Christian chorus line
They all said nothing
Blood's thick but nothing like a payroll
Bet they never spared a prayer for my soul
You can mark my words that I said it first
In a morning warning, no one heard
I patched up the crack along the wall
I pass it and lose track of what I'm saying
'Cause that's where I was when I lost it all
So, they killed Cassandra first 'cause she feared the worst
And tried to tell the town
So, they filled my cell with snakes, I regret to say
Do you believe me now?
Ah, ah-ah-ah, ah
I was onto something
Ah-ah-ah, ah
They all said nothing
Blood's thick but nothing like a payroll
Bet they never spared a prayer for my soul
You can mark my words that I said it first
In a morning warning, no one heard
No one heard, not a single word was heard
When the first stone's thrown, they're screaming
In the streets, there's a raging riot
When it's "Burn the bitch," they're shrieking
When the truth comes out, it's quiet
It's so quiet
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