Kim Kardashian West and Kanye West reportedly decided to release the Taylor Swift audio after she blasted the rapper at the Grammy Awards.
Taylor, 26, appeared to accuse Kanye, 39, of trying to undercut her success during her speech at the ceremony earlier this year and sources close to Kim, 35, and Kanye say this helped them decide to leak a series of videos on Snapchat, featuring the rapper on the phone to Taylor discussing the controversial lyrics to his track 'Famous'.
An insider told Us Weekly: "They wouldn't have released that tape had she not dedicated her Grammys speech to bashing Kanye for something she was aware of. Kim and Kanye hope that one day they can make up with Taylor. They aren't interested in having this beef.
"Kim is glad that the truth is out there. Kim was sick of it for them, for their kids, for everyone who believes in them, and she was not going to let people take Kanye down."
The track includes the lines "I feel like me and Taylor might still have sex / I made that bitch famous," in reference to Kanye interrupting her acceptance speech at the MTV VMAs in 2009 and Taylor previously insisted she had never given her approval to the song.
" @fireproofleigh: KIM DID THAT!!!! #KimExposedTaylorParty #TaylorGotExposedParty pic.twitter.com/5eBQkajjA9" someone ask Rick Ruben to confirm!
— Corbeau (@BriansRichards) July 18, 2016
Following the release of the tapes, when people accused her of lying, the 'Shake It Off' hitmaker has argued that Kanye never told her he'd call her a "bitch."
READ: Oh Snap! It’s a #KimExposedTaylorParty
Since the very public war of words between the trio, various celebrities - including Ruby Rose, Chloe Grace Moretz, Selena Gomez, Khloe Kardashian and Katy Perry - have weighed in on the argument with their own opinions.