Charli XCX clarifies "shady" comments about touring with Taylor Swift
7 August 2019, 15:56
Charli XCX made the remarks about Taylor Swift's Reputation Tour in a Pitchfork interview.
Charli XCX has explained her divisive comments about Taylor Swift's Reputation Tour in a new Pitchfork interview.
Yesterday (Aug 6), Pitchfork released a new cover story with Charli XCX. In the piece, Charli opens up about everything from her upcoming album to her career to date. However, it's a quote about touring with Taylor Swift that's made headlines. She said: "I’m really grateful that Taylor asked me on that tour but as an artist it kind of felt like I was getting up on stage and waving to 5-year-olds."
Taylor Swift fans interpreted the quote as shade and quickly got "#charlixcxisoverparty" trending on Twitter. Now Charli has responded to the backlash and clarified what she really meant by her comments.
Taking to Twitter last night (Aug 6), Charli tweeted: "just to clarify" alongside a lengthy note discussing her comments. Charli wrote: "Hey a few people on the internet have taken something I said out of context and I want to clarify there is absolutely no shade and only love here. As I say in the article and have said many times before, I am extremely grateful to Taylor for inviting me to open for her. She is one of the biggest artists of our generation."
She then adds: "In the printed version of this much wider conversation my answers about this tour were boiled down into one kind of weird sentence – leading up to that tour I'd been playing a tonne of 18+ club shows and so to be on stage in front of all ages was new to me and made me approach my performances with a whole new kind of energy – more so I talked about how it was brilliant opening for Taylor."
Charli also wrote: "I am extremely grateful for the opportunity I was given and how much fun it was to perform to a new audience!"
just to clarify 💕💕 pic.twitter.com/KpNQQx9SK0
— Charli (@charli_xcx) August 6, 2019
It's true that Charli and Taylor's fanbases and tour venues vary wildly. While Taylor has a fanbase of all ages, Charli's is more 18+ orientated and it's understandable that Charli would prefer performing for her own fans than another artist's. Not only that but her original comments weren't even directed at Taylor specifically.
In the Pitchfork interview, Charli also said that she doesn't want to open for any other artists any more: "I’ve done so much of it, and it really cemented my status as this underdog character, which I like now, but I need to just own my own fucking shit finally.”
Charli opened Taylor Swift's Reputation Tour with Camila Cabello in 2018. During her career to date, Charli has opened for other huge artists including Katy Perry, Halsey and Sia.
