Taylor Swift's 'horrible' Celine Dion Grammys snub defended as motive emerges

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Taylor Swift had left fans unhappy with the snub (Image: Getty Images for The Recording A)
Taylor Swift had left fans unhappy with the snub (Image: Getty Images for The Recording A)

Taylor Swift has been defended after she was branded "disrespectful" for appearing to snub Celine Dion at the 66th Annual Grammy Awards.

The Blank Space hitmaker, 34, was slammed by fans as she failed to make eye contact with Celine when the 55-year-old presented her with the award for Best Album. Failing to acknowledge Celine, Taylor instead looked back to her team to celebrate with them.

However, body language expert Judi James has urged fans to be kinder to Taylor and said she was likely just caught up in all of the excitement. Speaking exclusively to The Mirror, she said: "Taylor described herself in her acceptance speech as being 'mind-blown' so that might have also been her reason for failing to greet or acknowledge the evening's other true star and global legend who had battled illness to arrive looking pitch-perfectly glamorous as the night's surprise turn, Celine Dion, as she handed Taylor her award.

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Taylor Swift's 'horrible' Celine Dion Grammys snub defended as motive emerges qeithiddqiqdrinvTaylor swift didn't seem to acknowledge Celine Dion (66th Annual Grammy Awards/CBS)

"Dion's fans, who must have been three hankies' down by that point, might have been expecting Taylor to perform an elaborate ritual of respect for the woman who was creating hits long before Swift had been heard of. But instead, there is the now viral moment when Taylor arrives on stage, shoulders hunched in disbelief, trying to herd her friends into position and yelling 'Oh my god!' at them, while Celine stands waiting patiently, clutching her award and waiting to present it.

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"When Taylor finally steps to physically take the award from Celine's hands she appears to make no acknowledgement of Celine, instead turning her head away from the star to continue gasping in shock at her friends. Celine is left standing unacknowledged when fans might have been expecting some good gush from Taylor."

Judi said there did seem to be a moment Taylor might have acknowledged Celine, but sadly this didn't happen. She explained: "While Taylor makes her speech there is a point when she is thanking people and glances round at Celine who is standing to her right. This is surely the moment for Taylor to shed some tears about how honoured she is to have accepted her award from such a star but although Celine's face lights up with a gracious smile Taylor’s eyes don't seem to settle."

Taylor Swift's 'horrible' Celine Dion Grammys snub defended as motive emergesThe pair seemed to put the awkwardness behind them (Getty Images for The Recording A)
Taylor Swift's 'horrible' Celine Dion Grammys snub defended as motive emergesTaylor was blown away by the award (Getty Images for The Recording A)

Judi said Celine's response was "exquisite" as she remained smiling despite the apparent snub. The expert also pointed out how Taylor also failed to mention her boyfriend Travis Kelce in her acceptance speech.

However, the expert said the awkward moment shouldn't take away from Taylor's achievement. The singer made history as she became the first artist to win the Grammy Award for Best Album for a fourth time.

Judi told us: "Taylor's body language tells us that, however horrible it might look, Celine Dion-gate should not for one second mar or rob one second of glory from Taylor's well-deserved moment of peak achievement. Taylor is not known for her ego or her snubs. There is no bad blood between her and Celine and they posed later together smiling.

"Taylor is loyal to her friends and a team-player despite her sole stardom. If she had been wary about sharing her moment with another superstar she wouldn’t have been so adamant about dragging other people up on stage with her and yelling out she didn’t want to stand there alone."

She added: "She reacted like an excited teenager, not a narcissistic diva. So, from her body language signals alone it’s probably kinder to acknowledge the fact that she was genuinely ‘mind-blown’ in the moment and the rush of adrenalin meant she had no real idea what she was doing."

Scarlett O'Toole

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