Justin Bieber and Taylor Swift haven’t been able to stand each other for years, mostly thanks to Swift’s feud with Scooter Braun, who used to be Bieber’s manager, over the rights to her music. However, seems that Bieber wants to bury the hatchet with Swift, as he extended her olive branch. Sadly for the “Baby” singer, his peace offering ended up backfiring, causing Swift’s fans to label him as desperate for even trying to make amends. Justin has featured Swift on his Instagram Stories a couple of times throughout 2025, just not the way you may have assumed. Instead of going through his photo collection and posting a nostalgic throwback or two, he reposted a fan post that featured Swift’s music.

Bieber shared a fan edit of his son, Jack Blues, that used Swift’s song “Never Grow Up.” The post featured a shot of Jack’s hand as he looked away from the camera. However, fans were not impressed. “Justin Bieber is still desperate for Taylor Swift’s approval and her fanbase after posting an Instagram story using one of Taylor’s Version song re-recordings,” tweeted one fan on X, formerly Twitter. This post, of course, came a few months after Justin posted Swift’s song “Bad Blood” in another one of his Instagram Stories And while some fans were excited by the gesture, many continued to scoff at his efforts.

To understand why Justin received this reaction, Nicki Swift reached out to Amy Prenner, a Communications Executive at The Prenner Group, who explained why Justin Bieber’s olive branch toward Taylor Swift may not have been well-received. It mostly comes down to how genuine it may or may not have been.

As communications exec Amy Prenner explained to Nicki Swift, it seems obvious why Justin Bieber’s olive branch was totally trashed by Swift’s fans. “It’s all about perception vs. reality,” she explained. “Justin Bieber just reposted a fan’s birthday shoutout for his son… and guess what? The post had a Taylor Swift song playing in the background. Given that Justin and Taylor have had their share of drama, people are wondering if this was his way of trying to make peace, or if it was just a coincidence.” She continued, “When celebrities try to squash beef publicly, it’s a bit of a gamble. Sometimes it comes off as a sweet, grown-up move that makes fans go, ‘Hey, maybe these two are moving past old stuff.’ Other times, it feels like a social media stunt, and fans can sniff that out fast, which can also backfire.”

As for how Bieber can deal with hate and negativity from Swift’s devoted fans, who just aren’t ready to let their nasty Hollywood feud die? “The best game plan is to stay true and don’t feed the fire,” explained Prenner. “Instead of jumping into online battles, keep the focus on the positives—your own work, your growth, and what you stand for.” She also stressed the importance of private correspondences, rather than public spectacles. “Genuine, low-key gestures or private outreach to make peace often work better than grand public displays that can seem forced,” she added. Above all, being authentic and consistent is the best route because people can tell when someone’s being fake.