Chinese Taylor Swift fans are expressing outrage at Elon Musk after he made a controversial comment following Swift’s endorsement of Kamala Harris.
The tension began after Swift publicly supported Vice President Kamala Harris on Instagram, shortly after the ABC debate between Harris and former President Donald Trump.
In her post, Swift also referred to herself as a “Childless Cat Lady,” a pointed response to remarks made by Sen. JD Vance, Trump’s running mate, about childless individuals.
Musk then responded on X (formerly Twitter) with a comment directed at Swift: “Fine Taylor … you win … I will give you a child and guard your cats with my life.” This post, shared on Wednesday morning, sparked backlash among Swift’s fans in China.
A hashtag discussing Musk’s remark trended on Weibo, China’s version of X, garnering over 15 million views.
Chinese Swifties criticized Musk, with one fan from Jiangsu calling the comment “ridiculous,” and another from Tianjin accusing him of disrespecting women, even hoping for the failure of SpaceX’s launches.
Swift has a significant fanbase in China, despite not scheduling any shows there during her record-breaking Eras Tour. Her last public appearance in the country was in 2019 at Alibaba’s 11.11 Countdown Gala, where she expressed her appreciation for her Chinese supporters.
Musk, who also has fans in China, received a warm welcome during his visit in May 2023, complete with a red-carpet treatment and a lavish 16-course meal.
Chinese social media affectionately nicknamed him “Brother Ma,” playing on the Chinese character for his last name, which means “horse.”
