Taylor Swift may have some more haters on her hands.
Capital New York reported Tuesday that the pop country star has donated $50,000 in profits from her hit song “Welcome to New York” to New York City’s public schools, but her gesture is not getting quite the reception she was likely hoping for.
Swift, who reportedly earned $64 million last year, had previously promised to donate all the proceeds from the song to the city’s public schools during an October 2014 appearance on “The View.”
“Taylor Swift giving 50,000 dollars to NYC schools is like me throwing a quarter at a homeless guy,” one critic tweeted, as the New York Daily News noted.
“Almost enough to pay a teacher!” quipped another.
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The song “Welcome to New York” has been certified gold with 500,000 copies sold. ITunes charges $1.29 per download and most artists make about 10 cents for each dollar a song earns through downloads, leading some to question the generosity of Swift’s donation.
By comparison, billionaire Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg famously donated $100 million of his personal fortune to Newark’s public school system back in 2010.
The 25-year-old Swift is reportedly worth north of $200 million and she recently purchased a $20 million penthouse in New York City. She was named the city’s Global Welcome Ambassador when she announced plans for the donation last fall. Tree Paine, a publicist for Swift, told The New York Times on Tuesday, “This is not a one-time donation. Taylor will continue to donate the proceeds she receives from the sale of the single ‘Welcome to New York’ to N.Y.C. public schools.” Meanwhile, Devora Kaye, a spokeswoman for the Department of Education, said the city was “deeply appreciative of this kind of gesture.” And, of course, Swift has her fair share of supporters, too: I'm sorry — but if you're blasting @taylorswift13 for her "small" 50K donation, I'd like to see YOUR 50K donation.
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