Taylor Swift recently joined tumblr and proved wrong the people who believed that she couldn’t interact with her fans even more than she already did. The way Taylor obviously and genuinely cares for her fans has greatly increased the respect and admiration she receives from her fanbase. When it seemed the internet couldn’t be won over any more, she showed that she also has a sense of humor when she referenced a popular tumblr post.
In the post, there is a picture of young Taylor Swift with a comment stating that this was the original poster’s friend, Becky, who ‘snorted marijuana’ and died instantly. When one tumblr user responded, pointing out that the girl in the picture was not Becky, but Taylor Swift, another commenter replied, saying, “no it’s Becky.” In response to this post, Taylor wore a t-shirt last week bearing the words ‘no it’s Becky’ and the internet went crazy. But what was so remarkable about Taylor’s response to this meme? The fact that she embraced it as a silly and harmless joke instead of being turned off or offended by the meme proved that Taylor Swift isn’t just some diva who is the object of affection and attention to a large fanbase. She’s their friend.
Celebrities are the center of attention in popular culture, so it’s no surprise that images of them often become viral internet memes. Most of the time, these celebrities become memes completely unintentionally, and the ways in which they react to the memes can severely affect how they’re seen by their fans. At the end of the day, these celebrities are just people, too, and often times the kind of attention they receive from people on the internet can cross a line, or at least come very close to it. However, there is a huge difference between jokes that harmlessly poke fun at celebrities, and jokes that are legitimately creepy and offensive. When it comes to the former, having a sense of humor and embracing the meme has the power to skyrocket the likability of the celebrity.
Something as simple as wearing a t-shirt as a reference to a popular internet meme puts the celebrity on a much closer level to the fans, as opposed to quickly and harshly putting down the joke which can push the celebrity to the status of a diva who doesn’t care what their fans think. Fans are, arguably, the most important people in these celebrities’ careers, and acting as a friend who listens to their feelings and laughs at their jokes makes the celebrity much more relatable, and much more human.
Photo Sources:
http://taylorswift.tumblr.com/image/98389440415
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