Following confirmation that Taylor Swift donated $250,000 to Kesha in the midst of her legal battle with producer Dr. Luke, Demi Lovato — who previously voiced her support for Kesha — tweeted a statement that many Swift fans took as a shot at the 1989 singer-songwriter.
Take something to Capitol Hill or actually speak out about something and then I’ll be impressed.
— Demi Lovato (@ddlovato) February 22, 2016
“Take something to Capitol Hill or actually speak out about something and then I’ll be impressed,” Lovato tweeted, not long after sending out a series of tweets targeting “self-proclaimed feminists” who only speak out when it’s “convenient.”
Taylor Swift Donates $250,000 to Kesha
Many Swift fans took this as a subtweet aimed at Swift and voiced their displeasure online. Lovato responded to accusations that she was “shading” Swift via a discussion with Instagram user @ProudOfSwift in the Instagram comments section, which was captured by Just Jared.
“I didn’t shade Taylor,” Lovato wrote. “If you take it that way than [sic] fine. I’m just tired of seeing women use ‘women empowerment’ and ‘feminism’ to further brands without actually being the ones that have the uncomfortable conversations.”
Demi Lovato Supports ‘Brave & Beautiful’ Kesha
Lovato also disagreed with commenters who felt her tweets on the situation amounted to the “Confident” singer making Kesha’s legal struggle about Lovato.
“How the fuck am I making this about myself” Lovato shot back in an Instagram comment. “At least I’m talking about it. Not everyone has 250k to just give to people. Would love to but I didn’t grow up with money and def haven’t made as much as her. At least I speak up about shit that’s uncomfortable to talk about rather than trying to be politically correct 24/7.”