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Taylor Swift banned from Triple J Hottest 100: Fans react to epic #Tay4Hottest100 defeat

'Shake It Off' was disqualified after a social media campaign got out of hand

Jess Denham
Monday 26 January 2015 11:08 GMT
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Taylor Swift has been banned from Triple J's Hottest 100
Taylor Swift has been banned from Triple J's Hottest 100

Taylor Swift fans are waging war against Australia’s annual Triple J Hottest 100 countdown after it disqualified her song “Shake It Off”.

The US pop star was banned from the traditionally alternative summer chart after a social media campaign to get her hit track to the top sparked heated debate.

Just an hour before the countdown was due to start on air, Triple J posted an article explaining the “hilarious but totally true reasons” why #Tay4Hottest100 had bought Swift a “one way ticket to Bansville”.

“First I need to address something and it’s important, we haven’t addressed it yet. Taylor Swift. That’s what I’m talking about. Is she in this list?” said Triple J host Lewis McKirdy, before sounding a wrong answer buzzer and confirming that she was “out for a whole range of reasons”.

McKirdy directed listeners to website triplejfeed.com, where they could read more about the controversial decision, and it crashed within moments.

Triple J confirmed that “Shake It Off” had only reached number 12 despite all the “tweets, think pieces, hipster lulz, corporate intervention and heavy gif usage”. Instead, electronica star Chet Faker took the top spot with “Talk is Cheap”.

The radio station criticised Buzzfeed for trying to “directly influence a publicly voted music poll” with its “clickbait-fest” and attacked KFC for jumping on the #Tay4Hottest100 hashtag to promote its fried chicken.

Swift’s songs were not played on Triple J last year and apparently never have been since the station opened in 1975.

No doubt Taylor has shaken off the snub – “haters gonna hate” after all. However, Triple J wase keen to emphasise that there is “no beef” with the 25-year-old because she’s “smart, cool, successful and hates trolls too”.

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