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The #squad, by nature, is a phenomenon of the Instagram age. It exists solely to incite envy from followers, or at the very least, draw comparisons to what is arguably the most famous, most-Instagrammed #squad of all: Taylor Swift's. On the subject, The Cut writes, "Does a squad even exist if it can't make someone comment, 'Squad goals'?" Nope.
But the concept of the super tight-knit, besties-forever #squad is also a big lie. This, we have learned through the actions of one Joe Jonas, who, at some point this week unfollowed both his ex-girlfriend Gigi Hadid and her new boyfriend and ex-One Directioner Zayn Malik on Twitter.
Not a casualty of the purge, however, was a photo of Joe Jonas, Zayn Malik, and Kanye West at the Valentino presentation in Paris in June, captioned with the single, all-caps hashtag, "#SQUAD." (Despite what some are reporting, he hasn't deleted it yet.)
But a squad member unfollowing another purported squad member? This singularly proves that the Joe Jonas/Zayn Malik/Kanye West squad was all a lie. Just as all squads are.