Buzzing Bronx rapper Ice Spice joined Taylor Swift on the remix of her hit single “Karma.” Taylor announced the track on social media writing, “I’m a massive fan of this brilliant artist and after getting to know her I can confirm: She is the one to watch,” Swift declared Wednesday.
The collaboration announcement received mixed reactions and was seen as damage control by social media users who believe Taylor was trying to use Ice Spice for PR after her boyfriend, Matt Healy called the Nigerian-Dominican a “chubby Chinese lady.”
However, in a recent interview, Swift claimed it was the “Munch” rapper’s team who reached out to her. “Collaborating with Ice Spice on “Karma” was one of the most natural things,” said Taylor. “She reached out through her team, just kind of saying, “Hey, you know, Ice has been a big fan of Taylor since she was a little kid. We’d love to collaborate if that was ever something that came about.”
She continued, “And I had been listening to her nonstop, like getting ready for my tour, I was just listening to Ice Spice constantly. So I immediately got her number and said, “Hey, would you want to do your version of ‘Karma?’ Do you relate to this? and so she jumped in head first. Getting to know her has been so special because I’m blown away by her. She is, in my opinion, she is the one to watch. Just watching her work ethic and how thoughtfully she approaches her career. She’s like my new favorite artist. And I’m so honored that she’s on the song.”
The collaboration comes months after Swift’s rumored new boyfriend, the 1975’s Matty Healy received backlash for partaking in racist comments made about Ice Spice in a February podcast. During an appearance on “The Adam Friedland Show,” Healy joined hosts Friedland and Nick Mullen in making derogatory remarks about Ice Spice’s ethnicity and mannerisms, calling her an “Inuit Spice Girl,” and “chubby Chinese lady.”
In the episode, which was deleted from Spotify and Apple Music, Healy encouraged the co-hosts to mock-Japanese people working in concentration camps and did a Japanese accent himself.
While performing in Auckland, New Zealand, last month. Healy took a moment to apologize to Ice Spice directly.
“I never meant to hurt anybody,” he told the audience. “I’m sorry if I’ve offended you and, like, Ice Spice, I’m sorry. It’s not because I’m annoyed that me joking got misconstrued, it’s cause I don’t want Ice Spice to think I’m a d—. I love you, Ice Spice. I’m so sorry. I don’t want anything to be misconstrued as mean. I don’t mind being a bit of a joker … but I don’t want to be perceived as, like, kind of mean-hearted.”
“Karma” remix, which is Swift’s first ever collaboration with a female rapper is part of a new Midnights (Til Dawn Edition), out now. Swift has also released a new version of “Snow on the Beach” featuring a bit more Lana after fans complained that they couldn’t hear Del Rey’s voice on the original “Snow.”
Listen to “Karma” remix below.
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