BY CHEMELLE RICE
Multi award winner, Taylor Smith has quenched rumours of bad blood with fellow artist, Avril Lavingne, by inviting the 30 year old on stage to join her for a catching rendition of Avril’s 2002 hit complicated, as her 1989 tour extended to San Diego in America. The show which featured appearances by OMI and Avril-collaborators in no 1 billboard spot song ‘cheerleader’ was a knockout and contributed to burying any differences the two heart throbs may have previously had.
Circulating rumours of a fall out on social media was sparked by photos shared by a fan of Smith’s that included Kanye West, Kate Perry, Britney Spears and Avril Lavigne. Swift had ‘liked’ a comment by a fan that she came across as warm and friendly in her photos in contrast to the other celebrities who appeared cold and distant.
Her approval of those comments appeared to cause a rift between the two on social media which Smith was cool and collected to solve by inviting her on stage. Social media users are not the most sensitive when making their opinions, although it is fair to say that however insensitive a comment may seem, it is designed to reflect the opinion of the fan. Smith response in liking the post was natural, but it would be wiser in future to leave a little comment underneath the post advising fans to be divisive in their efforts to commend stars they adore. It becomes counterproductive when a star likes a post that is complimentary towards them but in the process implicitly endorses an unnecessarily condescending comment about other stars in the industry.
It wasn’t long ago when Smith had similarly invited Nicki Manaj on stage to bury the hatchet between them, after lambasting her for pitting women against each other. Allowing artists to share he platform seems to becoming a way for Smith to reconcile her differences with fellow artists, though she may soon have to start actually addressing the issue that created the problem in the first place.
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Artists are very busy and hardworking individuals, and can sometimes look withdrawn or distant because of the pressures of their work. Like the rest of us, they could have other personal issues in their mind, whilst another may be bursting in their element at that time and feeling right on top of the world. No celebrity wants to be described as cold and distant by fans, it is the job of writers in the media to provide a well reasoned opinion of how celebrities come across, regardless of how celebrities feel about that. However, when a fan expresses such opinion without putting their views in the context of surrounding facts or issues or providing a balanced perspective, they may put the artist in an awkward position.
Swift’s gesture in inviting Avril Lavigne on stage was absolutely commendable and went a long way in squashing any beef that was brewing between the pair. She later said on twitter ”so incredible stage with@Avril Lavigne, complicated is such a brilliant pop song and i just love her”. Avril reciprocated the kind words saying ” She is a doll”. Thank you for having me on stage and thank you for doing complicated, grateful”. This is indeed brilliant to see.
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