Posted 4 minutes agoSubscribe to BuzzFeed Daily NewsletterCaret DownHailey Bieber Said That She Doesn't "Feel Competitive" With People She's Not "Inspired By," And For Some Reason, Selena Gomez Responded"the only person keeping this hailey bieber and selena gomez narrative alive is selena gomez herself and her fans..."by Stephanie SoteriouBuzzFeed StaffFacebookPinterestLink People are side-eyeing Selena Gomez after she issued a statement alluding to Hailey Bieber's recent profile with WSJ, with many suggesting she was purposefully stirring the pot. Frazer Harrison / Getty Images If you need reminding, Selena and Hailey have been at the center of feud rumors for years, with the two women being pitted against one another since 2018. This is when Hailey first started dating her now-husband, Justin Bieber, who'd been embroiled in a seven-year on-again, off-again romance with Selena up until that point. Ricky Vigil M / Getty Images Since then, each star has been accused of shading the other by their respective fandoms, and both Selena and Hailey have issued statements urging their fans to stop. The most recent instance of this was last week, after Hailey discussed her thriving beauty business in an interview with the Wall Street Journal. Jose Perez / Getty Images It's worth noting that the journalist did specifically ask Hailey about the feud rumors surrounding her and Selena in this interview, and her publicist reportedly advised her to skip the question. Frazer Harrison / Getty Images Instead, Hailey is said to have told the reporter: "It's always annoying being pitted against other people. I didn't ask for that. When people want to see you a certain way and they've made up a story about you in their minds, it's not up to you to change that." Pascal Le Segretain / Getty Images Much later on in the interview, Hailey was asked if she feels "competitive" about her products being up against other beauty brands in big beauty stores like Sephora, and Hailey replied: "I think there is space for everybody... I don't feel competitive with people that I'm not inspired by." Bloomberg / Getty Images Needless to say, Selena fans interpreted this to be shade towards the star's own brand, Rare Beauty, although sources close to Hailey later told TMZ that she was not referring to Selena in any capacity. Jc Olivera / Getty Images Still, Selena took the opportunity to respond to the discourse that this line from Hailey had sparked among her fandom, writing on her Instagram story: "Just leave the girl alone. She can say whatever she wants. Doesn't affect my life whatsoever. It's just about relevance not intelligence. Be kind. All brands inspire me. There is room for everyone. And hopefully we can all stop." Instagram @selenagomez / Via Instagram: @selenagomez For what it's worth, she ended up deleting this post before its natural 24-hour expiration. And Selena's decision to speak out has been heavily criticized online, with some arguing that she was fueling the fire against Hailey with her statement - and pointing out that there is no suggestion that Hailey was referencing Rare Beauty in the interview. Frazer Harrison / Getty Images Reacting to Selena's statement on X, one viral tweet reads: "'she can say whatever she wants' and she didn't say a word.""the funniest thing is that Hailey didn't mention ANYONE, she just said 'I don't feel competitive with people who don't inspire me', which made Selena crashes out and taking personaly by pulling out her victimhood card..." another popular tweet adds. Somebody else noted that no other celebrities who have beauty brands commented on what Hailey said, writing: "hailey bieber said there's room for everyone in beauty and she's not competitive... didn't bother gaga, ariana, kylie, or rihanna. but guess who felt attacked? mrs. blanco. insecure much lol."While one more tweeted: "saying it's just about relevance not intelligence and be kind right after.."Another claimed: "the only person keeping this hailey bieber and selena gomez narrative alive is selena gomez herself and her fans..." What do you make of Selena's statement? Let me know in the comments below!