Taylor Swift accepted from Diana Ross the Dick Clark Award for Excellence, a new lifetime-achievement prize, at tonight’s American Music Awards — and in Swift’s telling, the presenter choice wasn’t as random as it seemed.
Ross “stood up for herself so many times, in a time when it was not popular for a woman to stand up for herself,” Swift said. It read like a subtle dig at her recent detractors in the streaming-music industry, like Spotify, who’ve grown frustrated at no longer being able to provide Swift’s music to free users — and the dig was made more explicit by Swift thanking her fans who “believe in the same thing I believe in, that music should be consumed in albums and albums should be respected as art.”
Check out Swift’s full speech above.
PHOTOS: See Taylor Swift Over the Years
Taylor Swift arrives at the 2006 CMT Music Awards at the Curb Event Center at Belmont University in Nashville, Tennessee.
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Taylor Swift arrives at the 2007 CMT Music Awards.
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Taylor Swift performs during the 42nd Annual Academy Of Country Music Awards held at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada in 2007.
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Taylor Swift performs during the Academy of Country Music New Artists' Party for a Cause show at the MGM Grand Hotel/Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada in 2008.
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Taylor Swift performs live on MTV's "TRL" at the MTV Studios in Times Square in New York City in 2008.
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Taylor Swift attends the 42nd Annual CMA Awards at the Sommet Center in Nashville, Tennessee in 2008.
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Singer Taylor Swift arrives at CNN Heroes: An All-Star Tribute at the Kodak Theatre in Hollywood, California in 2008.
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Taylor Swift performs on Saturday Night Live in 2009.
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Taylor Swift arrives at the Brit Awards 2009 at Earls Court in London, England.
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Taylor Swift performs during the 44th annual Academy of Country Music Awards All-Star Jam at the MGM Grand Hotel/Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada in 2009.
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Taylor Swift performs at Madison Square Garden in New York City in 2009.
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Taylor Swift arrives to the 2009 MTV Video Music Awards at Radio City Music Hall in New York City.
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Taylor Swift performs at the 43rd Annual CMA Awards from the Sommet Center in Nashville, Tennessee in 2009.
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Taylor Swift performs onstage at the 52nd Annual Grammy Awards held at Staples Center in Los Angeles, California in 2010.
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Taylor Swift drops one of her awards during the 52nd annual Grammy Awards in Los Angeles, California in 2010.
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Taylor Swift performs at the CMA Music Festival in Nashville, Tennessee in 2010.
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Taylor Swift performs during the Grand Ole Opry 85th birthday bash at the Grand Ole Opry House in Nashville, Tennessee in 2010.
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Taylor Swift performs "Back to December" at the 44th Annual CMA Awards at the Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Tennessee in 2010.
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Taylor Swift attends the 'Alexander McQueen: Savage Beauty' Costume Institute Gala at The Metropolitan Museum of Art in 2011.
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Taylor Swift performs at the 2012 MTV Video Music Awards at Staples Center in Los Angeles, California.
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Taylor Swift performs at the Radio One Teen Awards at Wembley Arena in London, England in 2012.
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Taylor Swift performs at the Radio One Teen Awards at Wembley Arena in London, England in 2012.
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Taylor Swift switches on the Christmas lights and performs for fans and shoppers at Westfield London in London, England in 2012.
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Taylor Swift arrives at the 26th Annual ARIA Awards 2012 at the Sydney Entertainment Centre in Sydney, Australia.
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Taylor Swift performs on stage during the 26th Annual ARIA Awards 2012 at the Sydney Entertainment Centre in Sydney, Australia.
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Taylor Swift performs during night 1 of the 2012 KIIS FM Jingle Ball at Nokia Theatre LA Live in Los Angeles, California.
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Taylor Swift in concert at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts in 2013.
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Taylor Swift performs while Candice Swanepoel walks the runway at the 2013 Victoria's Secret Fashion Show at the Lexington Avenue Armory in New York City.
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Taylor Swift performs at the Mercedes-Benz Arena on May 30, 2014 in Shanghai, China.
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Taylor Swift performs onstage during the 2014 American Music Awards held at Nokia Theatre L.A. Live on Nov. 23, 2014 in Los Angeles, Ca.
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Taylor Swift performs at the 2014 American Music Awards at Nokia Theatre L.A. Live on Nov. 23, 2014 in Los Angeles, Ca.
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Taylor Swift performs on The Voice in 2014.
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Taylor Swift performs during the 2014 Victoria's Secret Fashion Show at Earl's Court exhibition centre on Dec. 2, 2014 in London, England.
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Taylor Swift performs onstage during KIIS FM's Jingle Ball 2014 at Staples Center on December 5, 2014 in Los Angeles, Ca.
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