Taylor vs Kanye

Not every big beef is a rap beef. This one is pop vs rap, and it's really about one thing: receipts, meaning proof.

1. September 13, 2009

   Imma let you finish

   At the MTV VMAs, 19-year-old Taylor Swift wins Best Female Video for "You Belong With Me". Kanye walks on stage, takes her mic and says Beyoncé had one of the best videos of all time. The crowd boos. Later that night, Beyoncé wins Video of the Year and invites Taylor back out to finish her speech.

2. 2009–2010

   The fallout

   The moment becomes a meme. Even President Obama is caught off the record calling Kanye a jackass. Kanye apologizes, and at the 2010 VMAs Taylor performs "Innocent", widely read as being about him.

3. August 2015

   A truce

   Taylor presents Kanye with the Video Vanguard Award at the VMAs. It looks like they're cool.

4. February 2016

   'Famous'

   Kanye releases "Famous", with a line claiming he made Taylor famous and calling her a crude name. Kanye says Taylor approved it. Her team says she never approved that part and warned him the song sent a misogynistic message.

5. July 2016

   The Snapchat clips

   Kim Kardashian posts edited clips of the phone call where Taylor sounds friendly about the song. The internet turns on Taylor. #TaylorSwiftIsOverParty trends, and her comments fill with snake emojis.

6. 2017

   Reputation

   Taylor goes quiet for about a year, then returns with Reputation, using the snake imagery on her own terms. The "Look What You Made Me Do" video breaks YouTube's 24-hour viewing record at the time.

7. March 2020

   The full call leaks

   The full, unedited phone call leaks. Kanye never tells Taylor the crude line. She was agreeing to a milder version. The internet sort of apologizes.