Israeli songstress Noa Kirel did not waste any time during her time at Sunday's 2022 MTV Europe Music Awards, striking a conversation with pop megastar Taylor Swift.
Kirel made headlines earlier with her arrival at the awards in the German city of Dusseldorf by wearing an outfit that had Kanye West's face plastered all over it. West, know now goes by Ye, recently made a host of antisemitic comments, prompting his many business partners to cut ties with him.
The Israeli star's outfit was complete with a set of a gold crested "Hai" and the Star of David ewelry, as an obvious response to West's anti-semitic statements, which got him boycotted and his contract with Adidas, Balenciaga and Gap terminated.
"I chose a fashion item with a message to the world," Noa said. "To make it clear in no uncertain terms that I'm a proud Israeli Jew. We've been experiencing antisemitism lately, especially in light of Kanye West's comments, and I'm proud to be representing Israel in a global competition."
Not everyone, however, was impressed by the outfit. The UK newspaper Daily Mail put Kirel on their "worst dressed" list, writing, "Following a spate of recent controversies, it was an unusual choice for Israeli Noa Kirel to wear a co-ord covered in prints of Kanye West's face."
But the 21-year-old star did not let that put a damper on her evening. In a show of Israeli chutzpah, Kirel approached American pop star Taylor Swift, as they spoke about Kirel's outfit for a minute.
Reportedly, Swift liked the look. Incidentally, the U.S. star was sat next to British singer Gayle, who featured in Kirel's concert at Hayarkon Park in Tel Aviv over the summer.
Swift in the past was also the victim of West's erratic antics. He infamously stormed onto the stage at 2009 MTV Video Music Awards as Swift was accepting the award for Best Music Video, snatching a microphone from the singer and bizarrely insisting that Beyoncé should have won instead.
Kirel approached Swift
(Courtesy: MTV ישראל)
Seven years later, he released a video for his single "Famous," in which a Swift lookalike was lying naked next to West in bed.
The song included a line dedicated to Swift specifically: "I feel like me and Taylor Swift might still have sex... Why? I made that bitch famous."