For a while it was looking like Taylor Swift had more than just Katy Perry to deal with. Nicki Minaj shut her down. Some online sh-t with Avril Lavigne got stirred up last week. And Kanye was receiving the Video Vanguard Award at the VMAs. On Saturday night in San Diego, Taylor settled amicably with Avril, bringing her onstage to sing Complicated together.
More of a favour for Avril than anything else, non? I mean, Taylor has managed to do what Avril couldn’t: her fans aged with her. Avril has to keep going back and finding new 14 year olds to listen to her music. In the early years though, Avril’s songs weren’t that different from what Taylor sings now. Like if you’re only hearing it for the first time, doesn’t My Happy Ending sound so Swift?
Anyway, after making things right with Avril, Taylor took several members of her squad to the VMAs (although it should be noted that Cara Delevingne showed up for the carpet and then – did you see her with Squad Swift during the show at all?) and debuted the video for Wildest Dreams, co-starring Scott Eastwood, aka the worst actor ever. Sasha had the best comment to me over text about him. “I feel like his jizz stinks.” TOTALLY. And dude, if you can’t act in a music video, there’s no hope for you, ever. He just looks so… unnatural. Between the two of them destroying the dramatic art form, I almost think that Kelly Clarkson and Justin Guarini did a better job in that horrific movie they made together after American Idol.
Once the video was taken care of, Taylor then joined Nicki Minaj onstage, after Nicki was finished patting her pum pum, to announce to the world that they love each other again. I don’t know if it was because I’d been drinking but to me, they looked at each other with a lot of joy. And Nicki had a new target, besides.
Now that Nicki was back on side, that left Kanye West who, throughout the show, pretended to take a nap while Taylor was accepting one of her awards, again over Beyonce. But the announcer kept telling us that Taylor would be presenting Kanye’s Vanguard Award. Which, I mean, you KNOW Kanye. You know Kanye isn’t going to let MTV dictate to him who would be the one to hand him his lifetime achievement trophy. You know Kanye co-signed that. And then she went to stand beside his wife during his acceptance monologue. Which brings us back to where we started, back to one, one enemy, Katy Perry. Taylor Swift will make up with everyone but Katy Perry.
And still, overall, despite the amount of Taylor in the show, Taylor wasn’t actually the show, for a change. Over the last couple of years, she’s dominated the award shows and the internet with the in-audience dancing and her oh-my-gosh surprise faces and the friend-collecting, but at this year’s VMAs, Taylor kinda didn’t matter. Unbelievably, she made it through the VMAs drama-free. Maybe I’m speaking too soon.
Oh and the outfit? Predictably it’s easily my favourite of the night. First of all because it’s not Elie Saab. Second because it’s basically a glorified pair of pyjamas. And third, look at those shoes.
