Taylor Swift’s Feminism

Like many young women, on October 3rd, I was looking forward to hearing Taylor Swift’s new album. I have been following Swift’s work since I was five years old. In many senses, it feels like Swift has grown up with me, her albums chronicling the soundtracks for different points in my life. But her latest album, The Life of a Showgirl, garnered a different reaction. I found the songs extremely unrelatable, and while I do not feel it is Swift’s job to make music that is relatable for everyone, her album emphasized just how out of touch she is with some of her fans, most pertinently, those who are Black women. 

I have felt for a while that Swift’s conduct and music lack an intersectional feminist lens. Swift, a self-proclaimed feminist, often speaks in support of women’s rights, yet surrounds herself with people who hold views that perpetuate violence against women. Her closeness with Brittany Mahomes, who has been vocal about her support of President Donald J Trump, a person who has serially been accused of sexual assault, raises eyebrows about how seriously she takes her feminism. The people you choose to surround yourself with reflect upon you, and while they might not share the same views, we must ask why she continues to remain friends with people who perpetuate problematic views, especially against women.

Within this new album, however, Swift does not quite seem to care that she surrounds herself with problematic people, as she likes her friends “Cancelled!” While “cancellations” of celebrities, the collective protest and shunning of a public figure due to problematic actions, are targeted towards women and are often unfair and harsh, it is important to note that the public is not calling for her cancellation. Rather, they are insisting she explain why she allows herself to be surrounded by people who hold problematic views. 

Furthermore, her unfeminist actions were put directly on display in the chorus of “Eldest Daughter.” The chorus states 

“But I’m not a bad bitch

And this isn’t savage

But I’m never gonna let you down

I’m never gonna leave you out

So many traitors

Smooth operators

But I’m never gonna break that vow

I’m never gonna leave you now, now, now”

The first two lines utilize African-American Vernacular English in a way that to me reads that she is basically stating that she is not a Black woman. The “But” shifts the chorus in a way that makes it seem like Black women will let you down, leave you out, be traitors, smooth operators, break their vows, and leave the person, who in this song is assumed to be about Travis Kelce. He has most recently dated Black women, making this chorus seem like a diss to his Black exes. 

I yearn so badly to relate to Taylor Swift’s current album and her lifestyle. Her music was the soundtrack to my childhood. However, this new album put a wedge between her and her relationship with Black women. As an eldest daughter, I wanted to identify with this song so badly, but I can not because ultimately, I am a Black woman. While sonically, I think that people are being hard on this album, a conversation must be had surrounding the problematic nature of her feminism: one that Swift herself must have with her fans.

• college
• feminism
• intersectional feminism
• Taylor Swift
• the life of a showgirl