Taylor Swift Delicate Copies Kenzo Ad Britney Spears

Skip navigation!

Taylor Swift dropped a new video on Sunday night after winning female artist of the year at the 2018 iHeartRadio Music Awards, but in typical Taylor Swift fashion, the release has already sparked controversy.

The video for "Delicate", the fourth release from her album Reputation, sees Swift giving interviews on a red carpet and dancing around a fancy hotel lobby in a blue gown while making "dorky" faces. Instead of her usual #squad, though, Swift is alone. For most of the video, she's either being flanked by bodyguards, alone or being ignored.

While the video has been warmly received by fans, with many dubbing her expressions and uninhibited dancing "relatable", the rest of the discussion around it has been far less complimentary, with many accusing Swift of "ripping off" others' work and channelling dance prodigy Maddie Ziegler.

AdvertisementADVERTISEMENT

The most common comparison so far has been between the video and a Kenzo fragrance advert directed by Spike Jonze back in 2016. In the ad, actor Margaret Qualley (The Leftovers) dancing energetically around a fancy building in a gown while pulling strange faces.

Watch the ad above and you'll struggle to deny the similarities, both in terms of their content and aesthetics.

taylor swift's "delicate" video is a poor man's version of spike jonze's ad for Kenzo, this bop deserved more pic.twitter.com/39Ub99bKqc
— christina.jpg (@wtfcylon) March 12, 2018

Taylor Swift's "Delicate" video is weirdly similar to the Spike Jonze KENZO World commercial ?
— Candace Lowry (@TheCandaceLowry) March 12, 2018

✔ lonely/contemplative look off-cam
✔ silly wink faces pic.twitter.com/dS2rR3qGop
— kenny wassus (@kgw) March 12, 2018

✔ profile tracking shot of militant walk
✔ ballet leap (one v good, the other ... not as good — granted margaret qualley is a mutant dance goddess, so taylor was doomed there) pic.twitter.com/fLm2BM1M9b
— kenny wassus (@kgw) March 12, 2018

✔ dolly shot in ending w lukewarm smile pic.twitter.com/3sT9rpUPL6
— kenny wassus (@kgw) March 12, 2018

Kenzo ad by Spike Jonze + Maddie Ziegler in every Sia music video = Taylor Swift's Delicate music video
— Alice ? (@_quasialice) March 12, 2018

that swift girl obviously watched some spike jonze #delicate
— jakobesen (@jakobesen) March 12, 2018

The new @taylorswift13 Delicate music video is such an insanely blatant copy/rip-off of the Spike Jonze Kenzo World commercial. The setting, colour palette, choreography, everything.
— Gina Schreuder (@Gina_and_tonic) March 12, 2018

Others have made links between "Delicate" and Britney Spears' 2000 Hit "Lucky", which sees the pop icon struggling under the pressures of fame and surrounded by fans on a red carpet.

Again, the similarities are pretty striking.

Taylor Swift’s #Delicate is the reboot of Britney’s #Lucky pic.twitter.com/fqyV13wxSk
— Keely MacDonald (@KeelyMacDragon) March 12, 2018

The Delicate music video reminds me of the Lucky music video by Britney Spears.
— 11th Street Kid ? (@BlondiePoodle13) March 12, 2018

#Delicate was hella cute but britney bitch did it better #lucky
— Cassandra MacLennan (@cassmaclennan) March 12, 2018

Everyone thinks Taylor's 'Delicate' video is this original masterpiece.. It's not... Parts of it have a very similar concept to Britney's 'Lucky' and most of it has Maddie Ziegler written all over it (umm the dancing)...
— Zoe Elder (@Zoe_Elder101) March 12, 2018

Other eagle-eyed Britney fans have compared later scenes in "Delicate", in which Swift dances in an abandoned rainy street, to the video for Spears’ “Overprotected (Darkchild Remix)".

The video for the 2002 hit features a similar scene in which Spears (from 2:50 above).

This is real #Delicate #Overprotected i see the same thing pic.twitter.com/5NjtFUjjLO
— Enda Dollar ℹ️ (@endadollar) March 12, 2018

Just noticed something Taylor Swift Delicate VS Britney Spears Overprotected pic.twitter.com/abZuMjrBip
— Enda Dollar ℹ️ (@endadollar) March 12, 2018

Delicate is the unsexy version of Overprotected sue her @britneyspears pic.twitter.com/HnWOE5C1Pg
— ?? (@capitalized) March 12, 2018

These similarities will no doubt be a Delicate issue for Swift, who has faced plagiarism accusations in the past, including over the lyrics to her worldwide smash hit "Shake It Off" last year.

Read These Next:

Taylor Swift & Joe Alwyn Are No Longer Hiding From Paparazzi
Would Taylor Swift's Best Friends Really Sell Her Out Like This?
Taylor Swift's Fans Will Not Take This Criticism Lightly

AdvertisementADVERTISEMENT

More from Global News

Shame Has Changed Sides: Gisèle Pelicot’s Bravery Will Impact All...

Warning: This article contains descriptions of or allusions to rape, sexual abuse and gaslighting. We all have a Gisèle Pelicot in our life. She’s the w

by Susan Devaney

The World Is In Crisis & We’re All Grieving

Evie Muir is a nature writer, founder of Peaks of Colour, and author of Radical Rest. In this op-ed, they share their perspective on the importance of havi

Sha’Carri Richardson Is Officially An Olympian, Proving The Comeb...

Sha’Carri Richardson is officially an Olympian. After the controversy surrounding her Olympic run in 2021, the 24-year-old defied all odds and secure

Refinery29, Unbothered & Somos Have Been Acquired By Sundial Medi...

It’s a new day for Refinery29, Unbothered, and Somos. We have been acquired by Sundial Media Group (SMG). SMG is a powerhouse media company that owns bra

by Refinery29 Staff

The Mass Deportations of Haitians in the Dominican Republic Is An...

When I first read Edwidge Danticat’s “Create Dangerously,” I was struck by her understanding that the proverbial “immigrant artist at work” is fo

by Marjua Estevez

In Brazil’s Presidential Election, Women May Finally Stop B...

Brazil’s 2022 election season has already been historic for women and LGBTQ+ communities. At the start of the month, the South American country elected t

by Beatriz Miranda

Queen Elizabeth II Has Died At The Age Of 96

Queen Elizabeth II, Queen of the United Kingdom and 14 other sovereign countries and head of the Commonwealth, has died at age 96, Buckingham Palace has an

by Refinery29 Staff

Brittney Griner Pleads Guilty In Russia — We’re Fighting To Bring...

UPDATE: Brittney Griner has pleaded guilty to drug charges in Russia. Through an interpreter, Griner told the court that she had not intended to

by Dominique Symone

Abortion Access For All

What Abortion Access Looks Like Post-Roe Decision — The ...

This story will be updated as more news about the Dobbs decision comes to light. History will remember June 24, 2022, as the day the U.S. Supreme Court dec

by Molly Longman

Meet the Guatemalan Activists on the Frontlines of Change

In 2014, Topacio Reynoso Pacheco, 16, opposed a silver mine planned to operate near her hometown about 50 miles southeast of Guatemala’s capital in Mataq

by Shahrazad Encinias

As A Black Woman Who Lived In Sweden, #Swedengate Is All Too Fami...

Sweden used to evoke the usual stereotypes: blonde-haired blue-eyed people traipsing through green flowery fields, assemble-by-numbers furniture with simpl

by June Findlay

Why Celebrating Jubilee Weekend In The UK As A Second-Gen Immigra...

It’s Platinum Jubilee weekend in the UK, marking the 70th anniversary of Queen Elizabeth II’s ascension to the throne. But of course, in the UK you

by Michaela Makusha