The Influence of Swift

Unless you’ve been living on another planet, you have experienced the phenomenon that is the Taylor Swift movement. No matter which direction you turn, there she is—in some form or fashion. Magazines, playlists, Target, TV—she’s just everywhere! Even in college classes. Indianapolis changed its street names for her upcoming show there. As a former citizen of Indy, the city is already somewhat difficult to navigate if you’re not from there, so changing the street names for a pop star, is both confusing and unnecessary. (News article here: Indianapolis welcomes Taylor Swift with special street signs – Indianapolis News | Indiana Weather | Indiana Traffic | WISH-TV |). The obsession with her is annoying. She is overexposed, oversaturated, and over sensualized (I know this is not all her choice, but I don’t feel she minds it, it’s how she makes her money. I don’t think the reports she hates being in the spotlight..to be a celebrity you have to want that life. I wasn’t alive during Beatlemania, so I have never personally experienced anything like this. The constant borage of Swift, and her gaggle of followers (no matter the age) is something I don’t understand, and I don’t like it. While I believe the fandom was as popular for the Beatles, there is no way the media covered them as much.  For one, there was no social media when they burst onto the scene, and the world didn’t have as many options as we do today.  

It’s not that I don’t like her popularity because she’s everywhere (which she is), or that she’s mediocre (don’t hate me, but she is. If you ever non-partially listen to her music, her voice is average, and her lyrics are meh), the reasons that I don’t like her stem from the toxicity of her fandom and her, herself. Her lyrics are basic, unoriginal, and they don’t add to the music canon.  

Working with young children, I see her influence every day. She is brought up every day. These young kids look up to her as a role model. In my honest opinion, she shouldn’t be one. Parents see her as harmless, but she’s not. I have done a lot of research about her, and I have found some interesting theories about her life. There are many people who believe she is the devil incarnate. I will not go that far, but I found this article about her connection to the Priestess of Satanism interesting:Here’s why the theory that Taylor Swift is a satanist clone absolutely checks out | Mashable 

For several months, I have thought about her influence on the world, and how ridiculous it truly is. Mind you, I once thought she was harmless. I was never a fan perse, but I did listen to her music. Her songs got me through several breakups (that IS WHAT most of her songs are about). We, as humans, like feeling connected, and most of us have experienced a breakup or two, so her music connects us in that sense. It’s also not bad to see her as a role model for taking control of her own career, and her own music. I don’t agree with how she made her money. 

THE FOLLOWING IS MY PERSONAL THEORIES ON WHY SHE AND HER FANDOM IS NOT HEALTHY: 

1. Her music is an intimate look into her life—her thoughts and feelings, etc. Most music is this to an extent. However, I feel her music takes this expression of thoughts and feelings too far. Music isn’t meant to replace therapy. Not everyone in the world needs to know every detail of your personal life. There are reasons therapists and therapy groups exist—to be fair, I don’t know if she is seeing a therapist. If she is not, she should. Therapy is an excellent resource for everyone. While song writing is an expression outlet, it bothers me when people constantly profit off their personal lives to such an extreme matter—some things should be left private 
2. Young girls are listening to her music and bopping along singing her songs which have inappropriate themes for children. They don’t know what they are singing or imitating. I see parents post videos of their children doing sexualized dance moves because T-Swift did them. While this is not her fault, and it’s is up to their parents to teach them what is appropriate, she is still singing the inappropriate lyrics and performing the inappropriate dance moves 
3. Feuds. Taylor Swift has several ongoing feuds with other celebrities. How she has handled those feuds lacks maturity. I understand that she hates Kim Kardashian, and the feeling is mutual, but to involve Kardashian’s young child in that feud, to write, “One day, your kid comes home singin’ a song that only us two is gonna know is about you,” is unnecessary, inappropriate, and childish. As a role model to young people everywhere, she could and should do a better job demonstrating how to manage conflict. Not to mention her feus with Katie Perry, Nicki Minaj, and Kanye West. Notice there is one constant in allow the issues? hmm 
4. Her brand of feminism is not something I want to ascribe to. At its core, feminism is the belief in full social, economic, and political equality for women. Feminism largely arose in response to Western traditions that restricted the rights of women, but feminist thought has global manifestations and variations. Yes, feminism is important, and so are the feminists of the world, however, Swift degrades men to push forward the agenda of feminism. I can’t get down with that. Feminism should be about equality, not about women being better than men. If feminism is about women being better than men (which it has become), then it’s no better than what it’s fighting against. Men and women can be equal—no one better than the other. Swift’s form of feminism comes at the cost of the male population. 
5. Telling people who to vote for is an abuse of power. Celebrities should not be allowed to endorse a candidate, although most of them support the Democratic Party. Voting is a personal and private matter, and who you vote for should be kept personal and private. I know athletes and musicians believe it’s their platform to tell people who to vote for, but their platform should be to tell people to vote—people should vote for the candidate they believe will be the best leader in their lives, for the Country. I love how Alice Cooper addressed the issue: ALICE COOPER: ‘When Musicians Are Telling People Who To Vote For, I Think That’s An Abuse Of Power’ – BLABBERMOUTH.NET 
6. She contradicts herself. She is telling her fans to be kind to the environment—that we need to protect the planet, but she flies in her private jet from London to Scotland. That sends a mixed message. Also, her shows leave a large carbon footprint that not easily invalidated. This article demonstrates how much a tour increases the world’s carbon footprint: The Environmental Impact Of Touring: How Scientists, Musicians & Nonprofits Are Trying To Shrink Concerts’ Carbon Footprint | GRAMMY.com  Even if you try to reduce the carbon footprint of a tour, it’s a difficult proposition. She fought for the rights for her music (okay cool, go her), only to use those rights to squeeze more money out of her fans. Unlike Prince, who fought for the rights of his music, to expose the music industry’s corruptness.  
7. Her concerts aren’t accessible to the everyday person. I recently saw that the average price of one of her shows was $1,100. Who can afford $1,100 for a concert ticket in this economy. I spent over $300 to see Dierks a couple years ago, which I thought was a lot. That was for a private show, and I got to meet him. She made the movie, so that the concert would be more accessible, which is a nice gesture, but it’s the not the same feeling as being there in person. Let’s not forget the Ticketmaster debacle, where the site crashed, and people couldn’t purchase her tickets…you will not convince me her team didn’t orchestrate that to get more money. 
8. She is packaged well, but not a good example to young children. Where was she when 9-year-old girls were killed in London? SHE NEVER EVEN ADDRESSED IT. Her dance moves are sexualized. Her self-speak is not positive, and if you listen to her music, it’s about her—not about connecting to the generation she’s making music to. This article has a list of some of these moments in her songs: Taylor Swift Is The 21st Century’s Most Disorienting Pop Star : NPR. This doesn’t include her later music, especially The Tortured Poet’s Society in which she calls herself derogatory terms. THIS IS NOT A GOOD EXAMPLE FOR YOUNG FEMALES. She uses her music to slut-shame other females, while confessing to sleeping around herself. She is the epitome of a mean girl with her trove of followers supporting her mean girl behavior. Her fandom is toxic. They are mean to each other. No one can say a cross word about Taylor without being shunned and criticized by other fans. 
9. She abuses her power to promote negative ideas. She supported a friend who wore a swastika t-shirt. She stated she didn’t know what was on the shirt, but a celebrity of her caliber should pay attention and know better…She has also used black slang like “squad,” but her squad is a gaggle of little, white girls. She is the definition of abuse of her white privilege in America. She doesn’t know what it’s like to live in the real world. Most of us don’t own 9 homes, 2 private jets, or spend over $27 million dollars to spend time with our significant others (don’t get me started on her “relationship” with Travis Kelce, which you cannot convince me it’s not a media ploy). 
10. She’s a cult leader. Hear me out: I know what people think when I say this, but I am going to prove my point. Honestly, I am not the only person that feels this way. There are numerous podcasts/articles on the internet that follow similar tropes. Here’s one: The Cult of Taylor Swift – Sounds Like A Cult | Podcast on Spotify. If she told people to murder someone, her followers would. Generally, psychologist Jajna Lalich sees a couple of key elements defining a cult. “A cult is a group or movement with a shared commitment to a usually extreme ideology that is usually embodied in a charismatic leader.” These young girls are fawning after Swift (a charismatic leader), who they would do anything for. Also, the friendship bracelets (WTF, are we 10?) that her fans wear and exchange…are a simple of status and popularity in her fanbase. Grown men walking around with these bracelets on, I just don’t get it. Her fans became Chiefs’ watchers (I will not say fans because they are only watching in hopes to get a glimpse of her on the tv. As a lifelong Chiefs’ fan, this is annoying and frustrating because broadcasts have made the games about her, not about the players. Don’t get me started on how she’s made football a spectacle…that’s a blog for another time!) What she does, they do! Here is an insightful article on the psychology of cults: What Makes a Cult, and How Do Cult Leaders Control Their Followers? | Discover Magazine. 

Love or hate my opinion, but it’s mine. I don’t like Taylor Swift. I don’t support her. She’s average and well-packaged. She’s not worthy of the praise and admiration she is given, and we need to stop giving it to her.