Azealia Banks is once again mixed up in some drama and this time it’s with fellow Harlemite Teyana Taylor. Following the nasty dispute Banks had with Cardi B that resulted in the Bronx rapper deleting her Instagram account, Banks is now stirring the pot over dance moves she claims Taylor stole from choreographer Matthew Pasterisa.
The drama began on Instagram where Banks shared a sneak peek of a video for “Anna Wintour,” which shows her in a studio practicing a dance routine. In the comments, a person wrote that Banks was giving up “Teyana Taylor vibes,” to which Banks replied, “You mean the choreography she stole from [Pasterisa] and tried not to give him credit for until he got a lawyer involved.”
Banks was making reference to Kanye West’s “Fade” visual, implying Taylor never credited Pasterisa for his role in the video’s celebrated choreography. As to where Banks got the tea, it clearly came straight from Pasterisa, who is the choreographer behind “Anna Wintour.”
Pause: In her Vogue interview following the very celebrated release of “Fade,” Taylor was asked about the choreography and very specifically credited Pasterisa for contribution to her moves at the end of the video. She explained they came up with the sequence together in 2011 and subsequently pitched it to Beyoncé. Taylor said she loved it and was going to use it in a visual for “End of Time” until her pregnancy sidelined her plans.
Following Bank’s claim, Pasterisa responded on Instagram, writing that while he was grateful for the opportunities provided by “Fade,” he never received any pay. “I Thanked you [Teyana Taylor] Numerous of Times and Showed love. I’m Truly Blessed for it BUT Honestly, I didn’t know any thing about “FADE”, I didn’t Get any calls about it and I didn’t Receive any pay …. (SHE DID GIVE ME SOME CREDIT) I was truly hurt and Felt Stolen from.” Contrary to Banks’ claims, Pasterisa noted that he never took Taylor to court.
After spending Sunday (May 13, 2018) celebrating Mother’s Day, Taylor took the time to respond to Paterisa’s claims today, explaining she, too, was taken by surprise when West chose to release the video on MTV’s Video Music Award show in 2016.
“No one knew he was going to even put the video out! Therefore no one got paid!!! Not even Me!!!” Taylor wrote on Instagram. “It was an amazing look for EVERYONE involved INCLUDING YOU!!! In which you prematurely jumped in your feelings thinking that you weren’t credited.
“Do I need to post screenshots of your apologies saying that you jumped to conclusions?? Do we need to open up that can of worms?? Do we need to post the screenshots of the convo between my mom/manager and your manager just yesterday?? This could have all been avoided if you would have checked your friend from the gate.”
Taylor then reiterated the portion of “Fade” that included Taylor and Paterisa’s choreography was originally intended for for Beyoncé’s single.
Putting a cap on her read, Taylor pointed out Pasteria recently attended her Junie Bee Nail Salon opening, “smiling in my face.”
Check out the drama from start to finish below.
