The song includes a controversial lyric in reference to West's interruption of Taylor Swift's 2009 VMA acceptance speech and its aftermath: 

"For all my South Side niggas that know me best
I feel like me and Taylor might still have sex
Why?
I made that bitch famous
(Goddamn!)

I made that bitch famous."

Upon the song's release, the lyric was heavily publicized and criticized by media outlets, though West defended the line, saying, "I called Taylor and had a  [sic] hour long convo with her about the line and she thought it was funny and gave her blessings."
In response, Swift's spokesperson adamantly denied that West asked for her approval for the controversial lyric, with an official statement claiming that Swift had only been asked to release West's song on her Twitter page, and had instead warned him not to release a track "with such a strong misogynistic message".
In Swift's 2016 Grammy Awards victory speech for Album of the Year, she seemingly made a veiled reference to West's lyric, referring to "those people along the way who are going to try to undercut your success or take credit for your accomplishments or your fame."


In a June 2016 interview with GQ, West's wife Kim Kardashian claimed the couple possessed a video recording of West's phone call with Swift, in which Swift could be heard amiably discussing and approving the lyrics.
She clarified that Swift's camp had threatened legal action should the video be released, and argued that "I swear, my husband gets so much shit for things [when] he really was doing proper protocol and even called to get it approved."
In July 2016, Kardashian posted a recording of the phone conversation online, in which Swift can allegedly be heard approving West's lyric, describing it as a "compliment" and a show of friendship.
Due to the release of this video, Swift has been accused of lying about approving the lyric.
In the edited video, Swift appears to say: 
Yeah, go with whatever line makes you feel better, it's obviously very tongue-in-cheek either way.
And I really appreciate you telling me about it, that's really nice [...] I don't think anyone would listen to that and be like 'that's a real diss, she must be crying.'
You've gotta tell the story the way that it happened to you and the way that you experienced it.
You honestly didn't know who I was before that.
It doesn't matter that I sold 7 million of that album before you did that which is what happened, you didn't know who I was before that.
It's fine. [...]
If people ask me about it, I think it would be great for me to be like, ‘Look, he called me and told me about the line.'

West can be heard telling Swift, "I just had a responsibility to you as a friend, you know, and thanks for being so cool about it."
The recording of the call without Swift's consent was illegal and broke Californian telephone call recording law.
Following the video's release, Swift released a statement stating "being falsely painted as a liar when I was never given the full story or played any part of the song is character assassination", claiming West did not tell her she would be referred to as "that bitch".

On the same day as the video's release, Kardashian tweeted about National Snake Day, saying "They have holidays for everybody, I mean everything these days!
🐍".
This tweet was interpreted as being aimed at Swift, and the hashtag #TaylorSwiftIsASnake became trending.
In September 2016, Swift started using a filter created by Instagram CEO Kevin Systrom to automatically delete comments using the snake emoji on her profile.
By August 2017, Swift was using snakes in promotional material for her 2017 album Reputation.
They were worked into merchandise, the music video for its lead single "Look What You Made Me Do", and her 2018 Reputation Stadium Tour.

During an interview with Rolling Stone in its October 2019 issue, Swift said that the world "didn't understand the context and events" preceding West's diss towards her.
Swift also said that the drama was the last straw between her and West, stating: "When I heard the song, I was like, 'I'm done with
The song includes a controversial lyric in reference to West's interruption of Taylor Swift's 2009 VMA acceptance speech and its aftermath: 

"For all my South Side niggas that know me best
I feel like me and Taylor might still have sex
Why? I made that bitch famous
(Goddamn!)
I made that bitch famous."
Upon the song's release, the lyric was heavily publicized and criticized by media outlets, though West defended the line, saying, "I called Taylor and had a  [sic] hour long convo with her about the line and she thought it was funny and gave her blessings." In response, Swift's spokesperson adamantly denied that West asked for her approval for the controversial lyric, with an official statement claiming that Swift had only been asked to release West's song on her Twitter page, and had instead warned him not to release a track "with such a strong misogynistic message". In Swift's 2016 Grammy Awards victory speech for Album of the Year, she seemingly made a veiled reference to West's lyric, referring to "those people along the way who are going to try to undercut your success or take credit for your accomplishments or your fame."

In a June 2016 interview with GQ, West's wife Kim Kardashian claimed the couple possessed a video recording of West's phone call with Swift, in which Swift could be heard amiably discussing and approving the lyrics. She clarified that Swift's camp had threatened legal action should the video be released, and argued that "I swear, my husband gets so much shit for things [when] he really was doing proper protocol and even called to get it approved." In July 2016, Kardashian posted a recording of the phone conversation online, in which Swift can allegedly be heard approving West's lyric, describing it as a "compliment" and a show of friendship. Due to the release of this video, Swift has been accused of lying about approving the lyric. In the edited video, Swift appears to say: 
Yeah, go with whatever line makes you feel better, it's obviously very tongue-in-cheek either way. And I really appreciate you telling me about it, that's really nice [...] I don't think anyone would listen to that and be like 'that's a real diss, she must be crying.' You've gotta tell the story the way that it happened to you and the way that you experienced it. You honestly didn't know who I was before that. It doesn't matter that I sold 7 million of that album before you did that which is what happened, you didn't know who I was before that. It's fine. [...] If people ask me about it, I think it would be great for me to be like, ‘Look, he called me and told me about the line.'
West can be heard telling Swift, "I just had a responsibility to you as a friend, you know, and thanks for being so cool about it." The recording of the call without Swift's consent was illegal and broke Californian telephone call recording law. Following the video's release, Swift released a statement stating "being falsely painted as a liar when I was never given the full story or played any part of the song is character assassination", claiming West did not tell her she would be referred to as "that bitch".
On the same day as the video's release, Kardashian tweeted about National Snake Day, saying "They have holidays for everybody, I mean everything these days! 🐍". This tweet was interpreted as being aimed at Swift, and the hashtag #TaylorSwiftIsASnake became trending. In September 2016, Swift started using a filter created by Instagram CEO Kevin Systrom to automatically delete comments using the snake emoji on her profile. By August 2017, Swift was using snakes in promotional material for her 2017 album Reputation. They were worked into merchandise, the music video for its lead single "Look What You Made Me Do", and her 2018 Reputation Stadium Tour.
During an interview with Rolling Stone in its October 2019 issue, Swift said that the world "didn't understand the context and events" preceding West's diss towards her. Swift also said that the drama was the last straw between her and West, stating: "When I heard the song, I was like, 'I'm done with 
Famous (Kanye West song)