You may be scratching your head over the Selena Gomez and Hailey Bieber drama if you haven’t been keeping up with the latest “Jelena” and “Jailey” TikTok videos.
Before the rise of social media, Hollywood feuds were always a hot topic. However, if I tell you that Hailey Bieber’s friend Kylie Jenner shared a photo about eyebrows and then explained that this was a crushing attack on Selena Gomez, you might need some more backstory. So here’s some clarification for you if you want to be caught up on the drama:
What the heck is going on?
Everyone remembers Jelena, one time pop power couple Justin Bieber and Selena Gomez, and how Hailey Baldwin-Bieber was a big fan on Twitter. So people were also aware of when Jailey, Justin and Hailey, was born in the aftermath of that explosive breakup.
26-year-old socialite, Hailey Baldwin, now Bieber, was a huge fan of Justin and his relationship with ex-girlfriend Selena in 2011. His on-again-off-again relationship with Gomez muddied the waters of the discussion we’re still having nearly a decade later–whether Justin and Hailey had an affair or not.
In 2015, rumors spread that Justin and Hailey were dating, a year before they went public. This rumor popped up right in the middle of Justin and Selena’s on-again-off -again romance, and in 2018, Hailey and Justin announced their engagement — only two months after Justin and Selena ended their relationship for good.
Since it had been a few years since all the drama surrounding the trio was last sparked, people were placated when Selena and Hailey posed for a photo together. It seemed all was well. But despite Selena and Hailey’s distinct and public assertions that they are on good terms, some fans seem unable to let the past be left in the past.
Cue the newest drama of passive-aggressive posting on social media.
Both parties are turning to their best pals, Kylie Jenner and Taylor Swift, for insight into what might have happened. Meanwhile, Justin has escaped comparatively unscathed, as the media’s emphasis has remained squarely on women and not the potentially two-timing man between them.
The accusations that Hailey Bieber has been disparaging Selena Gomez include the following:
Hailey was accused of shading Selena when she shared Selena’s duet – without Selena
In February 2023, Hailey Bieber faced allegations of mocking Selena Gomez after she included Rema’s “Calm Down” from 2022 in an Instagram Story. Even though Selena was featured on a remake of Rema’s “Calm Down” in August 2022, Hailey only shared the version of the song Rema sang without Selena, leading to allegations that she was trying to throw shade at Selena.
Hailey was accused of copying Selena – multiple times
A TikTok video by user @seriousjacob featured side-by-side images of Hailey and Selena in matching ensembles went viral. The user also compared Selena’s (2020) HBO Max culinary program Selena + Chef and Hailey’s (2022) YouTube series What’s in My Kitchen? The user also noted the similarities between Selena’s 2015 “G” tattoo behind her ear in recognition of her sister Gracie and the “H” tattoo Hailey received the same year.
Hailey and Kylie Jenner face accusations that they shaded Selena Gomez’s eyebrows
Selena posted a silly TikTok video of her eyebrows with the caption, “I accidentally laminated my eyebrows too much.” In what is likely a petty response to Selena’s TikTok video, Kylie shared a picture of her eyebrows to her Instagram Story and wrote, “This was an accident?” She then attached a photo of her and Hailey’s eyebrow closeups from a FaceTime conversation.
In Kylie’s defense, she might not have seen Selena’s TikTok video, and people might be creating something out of nothing. Gomez replied to Kylie, saying it was nothing and that she loved Kylie’s cosmetics. However, on the same day, Swift responded to a video in which Hailey was called a “mean girl” for reacting negatively to the mention of Swift’s name in footage filmed at least five years ago.
When footage of Hailey criticizing Selena’s friend, pop icon Taylor Swift, emerged online in February 2023, Selena quickly came to Swift’s defense. In the clip, Hailey and Method Man can be seen hosting the reality music challenge Drop the Mic on TBS. The video showed Method Man promoting the following act as “a one-on-one rap battle full of the meanest songs about a star since Taylor Swift’s last album,” with Hailey rolling her eyes and sticking out her tongue in mock disbelief. It was captioned, “THISS is real Hailey ‘Bieber’ mean girl / matona / A Bully,” by TikTok user @duckcopycat0.
Selena defended Taylor in a now-deleted comment saying, “So sorry, my best friend is and continues to be one of the best in the game.
Hailey was accused of mocking Selena after the internet body-shamed the singer
Hailey and her friends Kendall Jenner and Justine Skye can be seen in the video lip-syncing the tune “and I’m not saying she deserved it, but God’s timing is always right.”
The video appeared after Selena was the subject of online harassment due to pictures taken on holiday in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico, and at the Golden Globe Awards. In January of 2023, Selena addressed the body-blaming comments on Instagram Live. She stated that she gained weight due to her holiday eating and reminding the world that weight retention is a side effect of the medication she takes for her Lupus. She admits proudly that she couldn’t care less.
Hailey addressed the allegations against her, saying that they were having some fun at a party, so they made a TikTok video. She claims it was not meant to be offensive to anyone.
In February of 2023, Selena Gomez commented on a TikTok video shared by user @ellenacuario in which Bieber was accused of shading Gomez after she was subjected to body shaming. “It’s ok! Nothing can bring me down! Treat others with kindness. x,” Selena remarked.
Now what?
Fans have long claimed that Hailey is copying Gomez’s style, beliefs, and actions, and they have used old interview excerpts and social media screenshots to back up their claims. Alternatively, Hailey’s supporters continue to use these strategies to portray Gomez as the resentful “other woman” who just can’t let go.
After Gomez responded to the drama by saying that as a 30-year-old woman, she was too old for this drama, the next day, she declared that she was taking a vacation from social media.
Hailey has seen a dramatic drop in her Instagram following in the past week. She has lost roughly a million Twitter fans so far. During the same time, Selena gained 10 million new followers. She became the most followed woman on Instagram, just ahead of Jenner, who lost an estimated one million and even had her old friends Jordyn Woods and Pia Mia pulled into the mix to make clear whose side they were on.