I never thought I’d write about Taylor Swift, but here I am, listening to her top hits while thinking about the ways in which she has changed after more than a decade in the public eye. With her new tour documentary release, Swift appears to be making some changes to her public persona.
For years, Swift was criticized for staying silent about politics and elections. But, on Oct. 7, Swift wrote an Instagram post in support of Democratic candidates in her home state of Tennessee, stating, “In the past I’ve been reluctant to publicly voice my political opinions, but due to several events in my life and in the world in the past two years, I feel very differently about that now. I always have and always will cast my vote based on which candidate will protect and fight for the human rights I believe we all deserve in this country.” Swift has 114 million Instagram followers.
In the Reputation Stadium Tour documentary, which was released Dec. 31 on Netflix, fans around the world can watch the live concert tour that garnered more than $266 million, as reported by Forbes. Social media platforms and news outlets alike have buzzed about whether this doc is a positive step for Swift, who faced backlash on her previous tour for 1989.
The 1989 tour, which spanned the second half of 2015, featured celebrity appearances like Mick Jagger, Serena Williams, Justin Timberlake, and Uzo Aduba, presentations by athletes Kobe Bryant and Dwyane Wade, and appearances by Swift’s “squad”—a group of women frequently seen with Swift.
Kadeen Griffiths of Bustle wrote on Sept. 1, 2017 that Swift featuring her guests and “squad” could be perceived as an act of “white feminism”—feminism that does not take into account the intersectional need to acknowledge additional factors, specifically racism. An additional Bustle article, written Jan. 19, 2018 by Kyli Rodriguez-Cayro, examines ways that white feminism can popularly show up in daily life, including the concept of “tokenizing.” Rodriguez-Cayro describes this as the inclusion of diverse woman solely for the sake of appearing diverse. Fans and critics were worried that some of Swift’s 1989 special guests were tokenization, as she often featured her guests as side accessories to her own performances.
The Reputation era has been a time of change for Swift. Swift’s backup team, both her dancers and vocalists, appear to be more diverse than tours past. From their skin tones to their body types, there is a lot of representation on stage, and it doesn’t go unnoticed.
In the Reputation single Look What You Made Me Do, Swift speaks the line “I’m sorry, the old Taylor can’t come to the phone right now. Why? Oh, cause she’s dead!” While many have perceived this to be a comment on Swift’s new tough-girl persona thanks to years of tabloid gossip, I think it’s meant to be a shift in her focus. For years, Swift remained silent on politics and was accused by many of exclusionary or poorly-intentioned practices. But, she has started speaking out on issues to make her art a better platform for artists of different backgrounds.
Perhaps Swift was unaware of the way her actions were perceived or how influential her opinions could be in our modern society. As I watched the tour documentary, I saw myself in each singing fan featured on screen. I’ll admit I had been wary of Swift in the past, but what appears to be her commitment to bettering her platform is something we should pay attention to in her future musical releases.
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