Sometimes, when something happens in the world, I briefly scan social media, to see the general response appearing on different platforms. Not because it is useful in any practical sense, but because it is fascinating to watch if, like me, you happen to be a sociology nerd. It is a double-edged sword, though. While it scratches my sociology itch, it can also make me want to tear my hair out and scream so loud that the eardrums of the world burst into flame. Case in point: Taylor Swift.
I am not a ‘Swiftie.’ I’ve listened to a bunch of her songs and watched Miss Americana and, honestly, I don’t understand the fuss. Her music just doesn’t float my boat. So be it. We all have different tastes. I don’t subscribe to the widely held belief that she is some kind of musical and/or lyrical genius. I’m also not a fan of capitalism, carbon emissions, or selective feminism – so there’s really not much in the Taylor Swift story that appeals to me, personally.
It’s the nature of her widescale social impact and what it says about us that draws my interest in this specific moment. Within the narrow, brutal confines of our capitalist system, we can probably all agree that, objectively, Taylor Swift is an astute and driven businesswoman. I acknowledge what she has achieved in building a billion-dollar business empire within an industry (and a world) that oozes misogyny. Of course, Taylor Swift is a white woman with wealthy parents and notable resources, so she comes from a place of privilege with the kind of rare head start that is unavailable to most. But within those parameters, she’s done well.
So, what’s grinding my gears? Not Taylor Swift, particularly. She’s just out there, doing her thing. It’s the social response generated by anything relating to her that is the issue - and there’s a reason for that.
Take the current example. Predictably, Taylor Swift endorsed Kamala Harris and Tim Walz as her preferred candidates in the upcoming US Presidential election. Of course, she did. Apart from the fact that the Trump campaign used her identity and image without consent by distributing fake, AI-generated images of her endorsing their candidate, anyone who has paid the slightest bit of attention to her meteoric rise will understand that the Harris campaign aligns more closely with Swift’s publicly stated views on a range of issues.
In releasing her much-anticipated announcement, Swift signed off her endorsement and identified herself as a “childless cat-lady” – mocking the past sexist comments of Trump’s running mate. Noted Trump supporter, Elon Musk, then broadcast a message to Swift on his social media platform, ‘X,’ saying that he would ‘give her a baby,’ and every rational person who saw that said, “Wow – you’re a disgusting creep,” or versions of the same. But as is often the case on social media, this thing continues to simmer, and it remains in the discourse and the consciousness – bubbling away, fuelled by think-pieces and blog posts which, in turn, do the rounds on social media as people try to unpick what it all means when someone like him says something like that to someone like her.
You know, like I’m doing here.
Well, actually… I’m not. What’s got me hammering away on my keyboard is not Musk, or even Swift. It’s the way this little moment revealed the extent of internalised sexism in those who probably think of themselves as ‘allies.’ On a wider scale, it’s how a woman who has reached the heights that Taylor Swift has reached becomes a lightning rod for some of our grimmest social attitudes.
After the initial social response to Musk’s comment – pointing out that he’s a creep – there was a wave of social media posts salivating over the idea of Swift’s boyfriend pummelling Musk. ‘Fans’ began to speculate about how Taylor Swift’s boyfriend would respond on his own media accounts and channels, or even in person. People whose intention was clearly to post in support of Taylor Swift, in the face of the predatory and oppressive attitude of a man, instinctively went straight to the idea of her romantic partner coming out swinging – either literally or figuratively - for the perceived crime of Disrespecting His Lady.
And all of that is sexism. While Elon Musk’s post reduces Swift to a non-autonomous vessel for his seed, these posts from her ‘supporters’ reduce her to some kind of damsel-in-distress, while simultaneously reducing her boyfriend to a stereotype of toxic masculinity. How quickly people who claim to be her fans forget the way she dealt with a predator who physically assaulted her at a press event in 2013. To refresh some memories: a DJ groped her while she posed for a photograph with him. She did not immediately report it for the same reasons that women all over the world do not report assault experiences. But she did, at some point, tell his employer, and the DJ lost his job.
In response, he escalated the situation by suing her for defamation. So, because he fought back against the consequences of his actions, she put the details of his actions squarely into the public sphere and counter-sued with an allegation of sexual assault - to prove that he did it and to use the case to draw attention to the kind of predation that women have to deal with daily, everywhere. She won the case in 2017, against the backdrop of the first year of Donald Trump’s Presidency, but only wanted $1 from the perpetrator. It wasn’t about money – it was about making an example of him and being an example to other women, because she understands who she is, and the power she holds in society. Her social power has only grown since that 2017 court case, and it is this extended level of global influence that, today, makes her a lightning rod for social attitudes, including sexism.
The basis of her influence comes from the careful curation of her public image, and from strategically building a devoted and intense fanbase that prides itself on its loyalty to her. It also comes from her historic and seismic moves within the music industry, including channelling fan loyalty into support for re-recording her early work, giving her full ownership of her masters. Back when she began to make in-roads in music – learning the ropes of effective marketing – she obviously found an industry run largely by rich men in record label offices who perpetuate the patriarchal status quo through ownership of the music they choose to champion. Once established, she carved out a new space for herself in that industry, guaranteeing her autonomy. And her legions of fans have cheered her on while she did it.
And this is the point. Taylor Swift is disruptive. Her approach to business disrupts the general status quo. The way things have always been done benefits men, mostly. She settled in, decided the Usual Way didn’t work for her, and changed it to a way that did. And now, just as she channelled the loyalty of her fanbase into support for her re-recordings, she has channelled enthusiasm for her autonomy into unprecedented support for her record-breaking Eras world tour. Having secured commercial independence, she has now achieved ubiquitousness. Her fans are so numerous that we have complete social saturation – even people who aren’t fans cannot escape a background level of constant Swift-Awareness.
It’s her Eras tour and associated movie release that’s done it. Taylor Swift is not alone in being a hugely successful woman in music. Rihanna and Beyonce are both brilliant businesswomen and billionaires, for example. Adele and Lady Gaga both have a net worth in the hundreds of millions. All of them have dedicated fans who support their varied and well-planned career endeavours. But Swift’s Eras tour has helped her reach sustained domination - not just of the music industry but of popular culture as a whole.
As far as proponents of the patriarchal status quo are concerned, this is the Danger Zone - because a background level of Swift-Awareness does not require a detailed understanding of all the different ways she can legitimately be thought of as a problematic figure. Without that in-depth information, she just becomes a generic media symbol of women doing whatever they want. All that is required is vague knowledge of the fact that a) she’s highly successful in her chosen field, and b) she identifies as a childless cat-lady.
Imagine if women everywhere started thinking they could be both of those things, too? Women around the world, not just in the West. That’s why men like Elon Musk feel compelled to reduce her in their social media posts. It’s also why the internalised sexism of others is drawn out and laid bare.
But, it doesn’t stop there. This snowball keeps rolling. When a popular phenomenon becomes so influential that it has the potential to increase the incidence of status quo disruption, social responses - in media and in person - become more extreme. For example, we still haven’t heard the definitive motivation of the teenage boy who stabbed ten people at a Taylor Swift-themed dance class for children in Southport, UK, but we know that it was an event run by women, and marketed to young girls as a chance to celebrate their hero. In selecting that very specific event, that was the demographic he targeted for his horrific violence - the social consequence of which was terror among the community, particularly women and girls. Then there was the teenage boy and his alleged co-conspirators who were arrested for planning a violent attack on an actual Taylor Swift concert in Vienna. They were narrowly prevented from murdering countless ‘Swifties,’ gathering to celebrate their hero.
Swift is everywhere, and millions of women and men are inspired by her and her achievements. This makes a significant contribution to the general emboldening of women in a sexist world. And so, the terrorising of her audience and women in general escalates, because we can’t have women getting ideas above their station now, can we? We can’t have women thinking a childless lifestyle is something they can choose for themselves. We can’t have women thinking that being ambitious is a good thing.
Women being financially independent bosses, and influencing other women to want the same? No. That’s a slippery slope that leads to all kinds of chaos, like increased support for the highly qualified and experienced Kamala Harris, helping to give her a real chance of becoming the first woman to be President of the United States.
This Total-Swift-Saturation Point shows us that it’s not actually about Taylor Swift. It never really was. It’s about us and what we do - consciously and unconsciously - when the pendulum swings.