So, Who Is Taylor Swift’s “Karma” Really About?
“My pennies made your crown.”
There are so many theories about who each song on Midnights could possibly be about. As for “Karma,” fans think Taylor Swift could have been inspired by her infamous feuds with Kanye West and Scooter Braun to pen the track. Once you look closer at the song’s lyrics, you’ll be thinking the same thing.
During the first verse, Swift appears to shade someone who once stabbed her in the back. “You're talking sh*t for the hell of it/ Addicted to betrayal, but you're relevant,” she sings on the track. “You're terrified to look down 'cause if you dare, you'll see the glare of everyone you burned just to get there.”
Fans think that description fits Kanye. If you remember, after the rapper crashed Swift’s acceptance speech for Video of the Year at the 2009 VMAs, he and Swift eventually reconciled and even became friends. However, their friendship went downhill in 2016 when Kanye released his controversial song “Famous,” which included lyrics taking aim at Swift. “I feel like me and Taylor might still have sex / Why, I made that b*tch famous,” he says on the track.
At the time, Kanye claimed Swift approved of the lyrics, but she denied it. Soon afterward, Kim leaked a phone call between Kanye and Swift that made it seem like Swift did give Kanye permission to use those lyrics. However, a new leaked audio in 2020 seemed to prove otherwise.
Considering Swift’s complicated history with Kanye, fans theorized that “Karma” could be about the rapper. “Karma by Taylor is about Kanye and you can’t convince me otherwise,” one person tweeted.
“karma is ABSOLUTELYYYY about kanye oh my god,” another person wrote.
Check out more tweets about the Kanye theory below.
Some fans also think “Karma” could be about Swift’s feud with Braun. Similar to her fallout with Kanye, Swift and Braun were apparently friends until he acquired Big Machine Label Group and bought her masters in 2019. According to Swifties, the singer appears to shade Braun during her song’s second verse. “Spiderboy, king of thieves/ Weave your little webs of opacity/ My pennies made your crown,” she sings on the track.
One person pointed out “Spiderboy” seemed to be a nod toward Braun’s name. “the karma lyric where taylor says ‘spider-boy’, look at the initials. SB. SCOOTER BRAUN,” they tweeted.
Another person was convinced the second verse had Braun written all over it. “You can’t tell me Karma isn’t @ scooter braun,” they tweeted.
One fan also thought the words “Boyfriend” and “God” during the chorus could reference Justin Bieber’s single “Boyfriend” and Ariana Grande’s single “God Is A Woman.” Both artists are managed by Braun, which seemingly makes the lyrics to “Karma” even more connected to him.
Here’s what other fans are saying about the theory “Karma” is about Braun:
Whoever “Karma” is about, they clearly have a messy relationship with Swift.
