Almost a year has passed since the end of The Eras Tour and we are still talking about Taylor Swift,and I can assure you it’s not usual. How can a singer, that until a couple weeks ago we had no idea was going to release something new, still be everywhere – even in the sports world – in the media? That’s the Swift Effect.
No matter how much you love or hate Taylor, you’ve got to admit that she is the moment, and that can be for a lot of reasons… for having the biggest tour ever, with an estimation of ten million people attending the 149 shows across the globe, or having one of the most prestigious discography and being the first artist to become a billionaire with music as the main source of income, and the list goes on and on…
This type of fame and level of attention can only be compared to what happened with The Beatles in the 60’s, what once was called “Beatlemania” now we call “Taylormania”.
SONGWRITING IS HER SUPERPOWEr
The same way people joke on the internet that Cristiano Ronaldo is mainly – if not only – attractive to men, Taylor has built her fanbase around women, from little girls to grown women, there’s no restraint. And why is that? Because of her main talent, songwriting.
Through her lyrics Swift connects the woman in her workspace and “crying a lot while still is productive”, the young woman who is moving out of her parents house but still feels like a little girl – the same as “Never Grow Up” – and the girl who is starting high school, being 15 years old and getting to know new people and new arrangements. No matter what age, she makes her lyrics relatable.
Being in the industry as long as Taylor has and being a singer-songwriter give us the pleasure to know different stages of her life and compare to our own and that is how she created a fanbase. But besides the music aspect, the “Taylormania” has much more factors to the equation.
One of the reasons that Taylor can keep such a strong fanbase that will do almost everything for her, is because she knows how to maintain that relationship interesting for both. It is not unusual to call “swifites” crazy, because they keep analyzing every single thing she does thinking that everything is an easter egg. Well, she may not think that much further as some theories we see on the internet, but still, Taylor has turned fan engagement into a part of the show.
THE SWIFT EFFECT: ECONOMIC MEETS POP CULTURE
Her care for the little details also makes her a better artist and justifies how big The Eras Tour was. A show with three and a half hours, dividing each album into a whole theatrical narrative, changing scenery, wardrobe, styles… and also making every show special with its own combination of “surprise songs”. It’s a whole new experience for her and for the fans, that makes them want to go to more than one knowing it won’t be the same. She created a whole spectacle, and impacted the world in an economic and cultural way, and that shows why she is one of the biggest artists in the industry.
Wherever The Eras Tour landed, local economies thrived, hotels booked out, flights filled, merchandise sold out. Analysts compared the boost to hosting the Super Bowl in each city. The same with the movie, the concert film “Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour” was showcased in more than 100 countries and grossed more than 260 million in global box office. That impacts the way different brands try to grab people’s attention, with more and more Taylor Swift related products.
But, despite her artistic persona, she is also a woman in the industry fighting for the rights of young artists. The whole story about the loss of her masters, the rerecordings, and her getting it all back now, showed the new voices that they should protect their product and not be exploited by the industry and the “rich guys”. Also, she speaks up about politics, human and civil rights, diversity, she uses her platform to do something good, something bigger than her singing career. Her documentary “Miss Americana” is a must watch to understand and get to know her more.
LEGACY IN THE MAKING
With all that said, Taylor is a gigantic artist, she has crafted her career knowing how to connect with fans, with the media, and most of all with her art. Even though it was not easy, she has discovered and rediscovered herself, with each “era” she gives more and more of herself as a performer, knowing in her career how to make style shifts, to explore herself and how to connect on a personal level with her fans around the world.
Taylor is more than a pop star. She’s a songwriter, a performer, a businesswoman, and an icon. I believe that, just like The Beatles, Michael Jackson and Madonna, her name will remain. As she once sang: ‘When they point to the pictures, please tell ’em my name… tell ’em how the crowds went wild.’ That’s Taylormania.
This article above was edited by Brisa Kunichiro. Liked this type of content? Check out Her Campus Casper Líbero for more!