Taylor Swift ‘Look What You Made Me Do’ video director denies imitating Beyoncé

"It is not in her art space"
The director of the music video for Taylor Swift‘s new single, ‘Look What You Made Me Do’, has denied copying Beyoncé‘s ‘Formation’ visuals.
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The ‘Look What You Made Me Do’ single was released on Thursday night, followed by a video teaser on Friday afternoon. Beyoncé fans were quick to draw a comparison between the imagery in Taylor’s music video and that of Beyoncé’s ‘Formation’, which was released in February 2016.
I thought this looked familiar….imitation is the sincerest form of flattery I guess 🤷🏽♀️ #LWYMMDvideo pic.twitter.com/ilA7sEZPPM
— Alyssa Santiago 🇨🇺 (@aly_santiago01) August 25, 2017
Last night, the ‘Look What You Made Me Do’ video director took to Twitter to address the claims, writing that though he greatly admires Beyoncé, Taylor’s video is “not in her art space.” He also added that more context would be provided tonight when the full ‘Look What You Made Me Do’ music video is debuted at the MTV VMAs. See the full tweet series below:
I've worked with Beyoncé a few times. She's an amazing person. The #LWYMMDvideo is not in her art space. Love and respect to Bey.
— Joseph Kahn (@JosephKahn) August 26, 2017
Also there's something to that "formation" shot I painted out and you haven't seen yet. Stay tuned Sunday 🙂#LWYMMDvideo#SneakyAsian
— Joseph Kahn (@JosephKahn) August 26, 2017
Joseph Kahn has been posting about the video production in the lead up to the full release tonight, revealing that the concept was drawn up in January before filming in May. He also posted a cryptic tweet calling himself a “Boa Kahnstrictor”, referencing the snake imagery that has dominated the marketing for ‘Look What You Made Me Do’.
I don't lie. I am a deadly Boa Kahnstrictor. I liesssssssssssssssssssssssss 🐍
(sorry, I have to stay up all night)
— Joseph Kahn (@JosephKahn) August 26, 2017
‘Look What You Made Me Do’ is the lead single from Swift’s sixth studio album, ‘Reputation’, set for release on 10 November. Fans have noticed a resemblance between Swift’s album artwork and that of Kanye West, with whom she has a long standing feud.
The release date has stirred controversy for falling on the tenth anniversary of the death of Kanye West‘s mother. Swift’s label have responded by claiming that there is “no correlation.”