To ask what the appeal is for Taylor Swift?

[lingo1234]

Maybe it's just me, but I find her music really average and I don't think she's anything special.

The Chief's Super Bowl win seems overshadowed by her and I don't understand why. I watch a lot of sports and I don't recall a team's final win ever being mostly about one of the players' spouse/partner.

AIBU to just not understand the appeal?

One of them is a successful, talented, hardworking woman. The other lucked into marrying someon who, by accident of birth, is entitled to consider us commoners and live a life of luxury.

DP was reading out the news story about Taylor Swift at the Super Bowl and our 11yo piped up 'Oh, is Taylor Swift a girl? I always imagined a 50 year old man in a blue jumper playing a guitar' 😆😆

@Phonedown Well, maybe if I was comparing…I was just giving an example of an artist with an edge that isn’t bland. An extreme example maybe, but just an example.

@Hoplolly I never said Courtney Love is a role model or musical genius? When I was a teen growing up me & my friends thought she had an edge & to us she didn’t seem boring so that was her appeal.

Or there's those who defend her to the hilt and write off real points as 'having a pop'.

I wouldn't ask you to explain why you like her music, that's your choice.
It's the weird hype around her and the way some fans have given her a goddess-like status, that I simply find odd.

I'm not sure what point you're making?

All the hype is lost on me too. 🤷‍♂️

I don't get it either. Before it was Beyonce, self proclaimed queen B, now it's Taylor Swift. It also seems to me that there is a hierarchy within entertainment industry.

Once you become hugely successful, other singers have to praise you at any public occasion to get your attention and be part of this amazing group to climb the wocial ladder.

I remember despite being so talented and successful, Adele would praise Queen B in awards, events.

Now I see Taylor with her cheeleading ladies and wonder if they are really friends.
In real life, people have very little time for friends after certain age or of they do, there are all sort of issues like we see on mumsnet on daily basis.

Both are privileged. Taylor Swift was also born rich. And singing is not that hard work. She was born with a talent and she nurtured it. She hasn't done any hard work. She is in exceptionally high paying career, with luxurious working conditions, topped with fame and being worshipped by millions. Hard work is working in real world in healthcare, teaching, cleaning, building, even banking where you are constantly using your body and mind to the limits and in return get money to survive or in some cases can afford occasional get aways.

No it has been created by her PR machine. One thing no other country can do better than her country is marketing and PR.

You know that Carole King didn't write those lyrics don't you? CK, by and large isn't a lyricist. Before she went solo Gerry Goffin wrote the lyrics and Carole the music. But don't let the facts get in the way of a good argument.
A lot of people have co-writers.

Hard work is working in real world in healthcare, teaching, cleaning, building, even banking where you are constantly using your body and mind to the limits and in return get money to survive or in some cases can afford occasional get aways.

With all respect, that's utter bullshit. Hard work comes in a variety of forms. It's not just physical. Hard work isn't just about survival. Some people work very hard to get to where they can in life because they want more than to just survive so it's disingenuous to say it's not hard work just because they're doing what you perceive to be hard.

The media reports I've seen about the Super Bowl haven't mentioned Taylor Swift much if at all. Maybe if you're looking in the main news sections rather than sports sections or sports news sites you're more likely to see her prominently featured, because publishers think non-sports fans are more likely to be interested in the celeb/cultural event aspects (especially as we're not in the US and most Brits don't have more than the vaguest idea how American football works).

You're more or less quoting her here.

The swiftie defense barrier is still fully functional I see.

Of course what she does is hard work. It is just different work.

amd hard work is not just using your body and mind to the limits just to survive or have an occasional get away. Thats a ludicrous idea.

Also, I don't buy into her 'only female artist are criticised and I'm the one initiating that we do something about it' narrative, because it isn't actually true. She is also quite selective in her feminism.

I think you are confusing hard work with soul-destroying work, @Redpaisley. It doesn't have to be the same thing, and not only those doing, in your eyes, "worthy" or ""useful" jobs work hard.

And why turn your derision in particular towards Swift? There are plenty of half-arsed nepo babies and swivel eyed wealthy corrupt politicians out there far more worthy of your appropbation.

She is also quite selective in her feminism.

Fucksake, the state of it.

String the witch up! She is ideologically impure!

Also, when discussing why there's so much hype around her, it's not really relevant to discuss how hard she works or how privileged she is. She works hard, like many others.
She has privilege, like some others.
Neither of these things are unique enough about her to explain the crazy hype that surrounds her.

@shearwater2 honeetly it's like a different planet on this thread. It's totally bizarre, the obsession with criticising her. She literally will never be good enough for some people. It's really eye opening.

I said that because so many people put her on an unjustified feminism pedestal of some sort. She's not the role model she's made out to be.

I find it eye opening the lengths that swifties go to defend her.

But where has anyone put her on that pedestal? It's honestly ridiculous.

I'm not a "Swifty" but I will rise to the defence of any woman who seems pleasant enough being unfairly criticised.

Particularly when I think the criticism comes from envy, sour grapes and deep-seated misogyny.