Throwing shade: Kylie Jenner encounters backlash after Instagram story appears to criticize Selena Gomez

March 21, 2023

By Brook D’Andrea
Staff Writer

Thirty-year-old American singer, actress, producer and businesswoman Selena Gomez is receiving love and support from all over the world after a series of Instagram stories posted by Kylie Jenner, a socialite, and businesswoman appeared to be making fun of Gomez with Justin Bieber’s wife Hailey Bieber. 

The feud started on Feb. 21 after Gomez explained on TikTok that she laminated her eyebrows too much and no longer feels pretty. 

Three hours later, Jenner posted an Instagram story of a close-up of her own face, saying, “This was an accident.” Then, Jenner posted a FaceTime screenshot of her and a close-up of Hailey Bieber’s eyebrows. This caused many people, including Shalina DeLaCruz, to believe that Jenner was insulting Gomez.

“I was never a fan of Hailey Bieber, and this made me less of a fan of Kylie,” DeLaCruz said.

In a Feb. 22 TikTok post, the user devotedly.yours speculated that Jenner had been critical of Gomez caught Kylie Jenner’s attention. Jenner responded by commenting, “This is reaching. no shade towards Selena ever and I didn’t see her eyebrow posts! u guys are making something out of nothing. this is silly.”

DeLaCruz said she does not believe Jenner.

“I don’t think it’s a coincidence,” DeLaCruz said. “That post was regarded against Gomez, and she is just saying that so she does not get any hate.”

“I was never a fan of Hailey Bieber, and this made me less of a fan of Kylie.”

Gomez responded to Jenner’s comments, sayings, “Agreed @kyliejenner. It’s all unnecessary. I’m a fan of Kylie!” 

DeLaCruz said when she was growing up, Gomez was one of her favorite actors and she will continue to support her.

“Hailey and Kylie [should have] minded their business and not post on social media with millions of followers to see,” DeLaCruz said. 

On Feb. 23, Gomez went on TikTok Live explaining her intentions of taking a break from social media.

“I’m 30, I’m too old for this. But I love you guys so much and I will see you guys sooner than later,” Gomez said. “I have the best friends, the best fans in the whole world, and I just couldn’t be happier. I’m good, I love the way I am, I don’t care. I’m big, I’m not, I don’t care. I love who I am.”

Users responded with sympathy for Gomez and disappointment in Hailey Bieber. On Feb. 26 alone, Hailey Bieber lost 257,285 followers, according to InsTrack, which offers powerful analytics and in-depth actionable insights for brands, influencers and agencies.

Kylie Jenner used to be the most-followed woman on Instagram with 380 million followers, but after being called out for being a “mean girl,” she lost a million followers. However, now, she has recovered from the loss with 381 million followers.

Meanwhile, Gomez gained over 20 million followers and is now the most-followed woman on Instagram with 402 million followers. 

DeLaCruz said she is happy Gomez passed such a big milestone. 

“I never followed Hailey, but I did unfollow Kylie because she had no right to be making fun of Selena,” DeLaCruz said. 

Like DeLaCruz, sophomore Mariz Melad said she supports Gomez.

“Selena didn’t do anything wrong…. Hailey Bieber thinks that she can go off and bully [Gomez] over her body and her eyebrows,” Melad said. “Me personally, I didn’t know [Hailey Bieber] existed until she was married to Justin Bieber.” 

Old interviews and photos of Hailey Bieber that are now resurfacing online reveal that she may have been trying to emulate Gomez’s appearance and messages in addition to following her around. 

Melad said she agrees with people calling Jenner a stalker due to the strangeness of some of the videos.  

“[In] some of the interviews, she said that she didn’t steal Justin from Selena, but I saw one TikTok that showed Hailey stalking Justin and Selena everywhere they [went],” Melad said. “Justin said that their marriage was arranged, so it’s weird.”

An old video of Hailey Bieber from 2017 that was reposted on TikTok shows her making a gagging face on the show “Drop the Mic” when her cohost Method Man mentioned American singer-songwriter Taylor Swift. 

Gomez commented on the TikTok, saying, “So sorry, my best friend is and continues to be one of the best in the game.”

Melad said she has watched the video and is happy Gomez supported Swift. 

“Selena said what had to be said. Taylor Swift is a great singer,” said Melad.