Women supporting women can be alarmingly rare in Hollywood – but the model is bucking the trend with her comments on the ‘Cruel Summer’ singer.
Now, Ratajkowski has sparked a huge debate on social media with her bold claim.
Critics have argued that disliking an artist does not necessarily equate to misogyny, with one person commenting: “My taste in music does not make me anything.”
Another adds: “Music is personal, we don’t have to like a specific singer because many people like him/her.”
“Some people just don’t like Taylor Swift and that’s fine. It doesn’t make them a misogynist,” weighs in a third.
Others agree with Ratajowski, with a Swiftie saying: “She chose to spit FACTS.”
Agreeing, a second comments: “Couldn’t have said it any better.”
“She’s so real for that,” writes another.
The Gone Girl star made the controversial comment during an episode of her podcast, HighLow with Emrata, featuring singer Troye Sivan.
Swift came up in conversation when the pair were discussing pop music.
Despite being a global superstar, the ‘Bad Blood’ artist has long faced intense public scrutiny – critics often dismiss her work, attributing her success to trivial factors or personal controversies.
At one point, Ratajkowski didn’t believe popularity equated to quality, but her perspective has shifted.
The model admitted: “I came around… It changed it for me completely.”
Ratajkowski then brought up those who don’t appreciate Swift, boldly stating: “I was not a Swiftie, and now I’m like, ‘You know what that means? That means I was a misogynist that I didn’t f*** with Taylor Swift.’
“Because I went to her concert, and I was like, ‘This person is an incredible songwriter, an incredible performer, and anybody who says anything else? Like, they have issues. And actually maybe not a very sophisticated palette.’
“If you don’t like Taylor Swift, then, like, you don’t understand things.”
A misogynist is defined as a person who hates, dislikes, or has a mistrust of women or girls, with Verywell Mind elaborating: “Misogyny involves punishing women for challenging male dominance. It may be rooted in hatred for women, but it is not the same as sexism.”
This isn’t the first time Ratajkowski has spoken out in defense of Swift.
The ‘Love Story’ singer appeared on The Ellen DeGeneres Show in 2012 and was asked to ring the bell when she came across a photo of a man she dated.
Swift pleaded for the game to stop, saying: “Stop it, stop it, stop! This makes me feel so bad about myself.”
Praising how the singer handled the situation, Ratajkowski told Elle that watching the interview ‘upset’ her and that people often dismiss the discomfort of femme-presenting people.
“I want to change the way that we think about femme-presenting people in the world. That is my goal,” she said.
“I think that we have these associations around the feminine that are so problematic, and it’s affecting men as well. It’s affecting all of us. And it’s really important to me that that changes. That’s what I’m most interested in doing and the impact that I hope to have long term.”