OK, I’ve finally figured out what I think about Taylor Swift.
I know you’ve probably been hanging on for years wondering, “Gee, I wish Noel would just let us know what he really things about Taylor.” Well, here goes…
I respect the boldness of reinvention TSwift has shown in her music career—leaving a very lucrative career as a country musician in 2014 to embrace a more pop/synth sound. She has since reinvented herself a few times over as a pop artist–first as a teenage sensation, then a princess fairy tale, then a maturing artist, then the dark “Reputation” days, the optimistic “Lovers” phase and so on. She has even crafted a worldwide “Eras Tour” that trips through the creative phases of her pop career. Concert goers and fans (AKA Swifties) are even encouraged to wear “costumes” inspired by their favourite “Era.”
If you are so inclined, take the Buzz Feed Quiz and see which “Era” you belong to!
Here’s what I don’t get.
TSwift is praised from every corner for her “authenticity” while she manufactures and remanufactures her music and social media identity year in and year out. How is that authentic? At this year’s “Swiftposium,” an academic conference hosted by the University of Melbourne on Taylor Swift (no, I’m not making that up. Check it out here) Marc Cheong asks,
“Taylor Swift fans adore her authenticity, but what does it actually mean to be ‘authentic’ when you are a mega-celebrity in the digital age?” [note 1]
It’s a good question. Is TSwift really the “Antihero” or is she the triumphant hero of her own social media story? Cheong and other academics are intrigued by how something like authenticity has been changed by the social media environment. “Authentic” used to mean “of undisputed origin; genuine, bona fide, true.” But now it has taken on a more subjective feel. Popular media pundits argue that TSwift is “authentic” in the way she authors a feeling of “realness, empathy, kindness, listening, a narrative (or journey-like) space big enough for all to partake and feel whole with oneself and others” [note 2]
There is no question TSwift uses social media in a way unlike anyone before her. Superstars have long practised the art of manipulation of their fan base, even of mass media, but nobody has leveraged it like she has. She has millions of media consumers that listen to every word she says. Sometimes she uses her platform to try to correct harmful behaviours among her fans. Sometimes it works, and sometimes it doesn’t work.
Other times, she leverages the platform to shamelessly to hype her brand. Which begs the question, is this really authentic? Is a compelling narrative an identity or is it a brand? Or is there even a difference? At this point I think it would be helpful to bring in another Taylor, Canadian philosopher Charles Taylor.
(Charles) Taylor suggests that in the late-modern era we are seeing something new in what he calls “the Age of Authenticity.” [note 3] It is a complex development of the Expressivism of the Romantic Period in the late 18th century that has now worked its way into the everyday life of regular 21st century people. Now this gets complicated quick but here’s how it plays in the “Era of Authenticity” (see what I did there Swifties?)
In the late modern era, everyone is on a journey of self discovery, trying to figure out who they are? This has ultimately made identity a kind of commodity, something that must be cultivated and sustained through social feedback.
On the one hand, it’s good news that your identity is no longer rigidly defined by society. You are not constrained to fit within default roles decided by the patriarchy or by some other authority. There are many previously marginalized people who can now have a voice and can advocate for themselves.
You define you. That’s good, but there’s a catch. Now you have a job to do. Now you need to find an identity and then present / project it into the world and receive recognition or it doesn’t count. (Charles) Taylor calls it “the politics of recognition” [note 4] and the struggle is real.
The classic tree falling the forest question comes into play here. If I decide that I am “the funny guy” at work, I need to perform the “funny guy” every day, or it isn’t authentic / true. And what happens if nobody finds me funny? Then my whole identity project is in jeopardy. (Charles) Taylor says, “Our identities are formed in dialogue with others, in agreement or struggle with their recognition of us.”[note 5] Author Andrew Root adds, “I may have the freedom to construct my own identity, finding my ‘this is me’ through my own internal feel. But at some point I can only really truly have an identity by broadcasting it to others, who in turn recognize it. [note 6]
If I decide that I am “the busy person,” the one that is always working harder, I need to perform that identity or it fails to be true. That’s why that person at work is always going on about how busy they are. They are performing an identity (orally mind you… Come on Boomer, it works better when you do in on Insta or TikTok) And what if nobody notices (or worse nobody cares). An identity only exists in the context of conversation and dialogue. My true identity is validated and authenticated by the likes and retweets. I say “I am this” and wait for people to recognize me “Yes, you are this.”
What TSwift is doing is pumping out an identity more “authentically” (read empathetically) than any pop star has in history. She has millions of followers who bounce back the signal: “You are this! You are that!” This only leaves room for those who reflect the signal (the Swifties) and those who don’t (the haters.) The Twitter feuds that TSwift and other celebrities get into have more to do with one celebrity (or ex boyfriend) refusing to recognize the narrative of another. “You don’t validate my identity? You’re a hater.” Shake it off.
I am very sure there are lots of women in their twenties and thirties that are talented musicians in Nashville right now who might only be significantly different from TSwift in one way. They lack a couple million followers that resonate with the story that TSwift is telling. For as good a musician and as great a lyricist as TSwift is, it turns out that she is an even better storyteller.
As a Christian minster I find many of the people I work with–people who are a part of my church family, are run down and exhausted these days. Without realizing it, they have forgotten the story that frames their true identity.
Sociologist Hartmut Rosa says that what we really need right now, is not a bigger social media platform; not more likes or more views. What we need-what our churches need right now-are experiences of resonance: deep experiences of meaning and connection. What is that? Well that’s a story for another blog post.
NCW
Notes
- Marc Cheong, ” ‘Anti-hero’: A philosophical take on taylor’s existential authenticity.” Pursuit, University of Melbourne Publication. Online https://pursuit.unimelb.edu.au/articles/anti-hero-a-philosophical-take-on-taylor-s-existential-authenticity
- https://www.forbes.com/sites/caterinabulgarella/2023/10/20/three-ways-to-tap-into-taylor-swifts-authenticity-and-build-an-eras-like-workplace/?sh=47124f3e18b7
- Charles Taylor, A Secular Age. Harvard University Press. (2007) p. 473.
- Charles Taylor, Multiculturalism and the Politics of Recognition: An Essay. Princeton University Press (1993) p. 31
- Charles Taylor, Malaise of Modernity, House of Anansi Press. (1991) p. 46.
- Andrew Root, The End of Youth Ministry? Why Parents Don’t Really Care about Youth Groups and What Youth Workers Should Do about It. Baker Academic Press (2020) p. 81.
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