AIBU to think Taylor Swift is being carefully repositioned and we’re not meant to notice?

[MidnightTheory]

I can’t shake the feeling that there’s a very slow, very subtle shift going on with Taylor Swift’s brand.

She built herself up as pro-choice, feminist, outspoken and a liberal figure. But since this whole NFL era, it feels like the edges are being sanded down. It’s not loud, not obvious, just little things like the relentless focus on her cheering in the boxes, the glossy all American girlfriend framing, the way the messaging has become more family-friendly, less political.

It’s clever because it’s incremental. Nobody suddenly says that she’s gone conservative, but drip by drip she’s aligning with NFL values which are patriotism, wholesomeness and big money sponsors who want safe.

I'm not a massive swiftie, but I have enjoyed her music, and maybe I'm a bit of a cynic but isn’t this how brand re-positioning works? Quiet, steady, so by the time you realise it’s happened, it already has.

AIBU to think we’re watching that play out in real time and it could backfire badly? Especially if the upcoming album turns out to be very beige?

Maybe she’s aiming to have a child?

I don’t think her core beliefs have changed.

The question you need to ask yourself is who is actually doing the framing, is it her or is it the media. And then who would benefit from the shift.
Because to me, the media are the ones taking photos of her at games. And she stands to lose a lot by going for the conservative audience as they dont want her, and her fan base wouldn't like it!

"I'm not a massive Swiftie"

analyses her political 'framing'

🤣 Sorry, no idea. Maybe she just likes her boyfriend?

She's getting older, mid thirties now. People often become less outspoken as they gain life experience. Maybe she doesn't want to be in the political crossfire.

She built herself up as pro-choice, feminist, outspoken and a liberal figure.

Did she tho? She's consistently called out sexism, stood up for those who had been sexually harassed (herself and Kesha) but in her Miss Americana doc she said she wishes she could be more political and outspoken but her dad always talked her out of it because he was worried about her safety.

The last two elections she's publicly endorsed the democrats and admitted that her endorsement could potentially do more harm than good. Travis might be in the NFL with republican owners/teammates but he's always come across as someone who is a good guy.

Quite frankly, I think now she HAS to stay quiet for her own safety. Her dad was right about that. She's had to deal with stalkers, someone trying to blow up one of her concerts, and there's plenty of nutjobs who would happily try and take her as a target so I think she's not being apolitical, she's trying to stay alive.

I agree.

And this NFL season she has not been pictured at the games. She has been there but has specifically and deliberately made herself unseen by the media (I mean, there’s no way she’s done it accidentally, she is staying out of view). So is she aligning herself with the big money sponsors of the NFL, or is she deliberately not giving them tv shots of her?

I think she definitely has stepped back and I was wondering if it was that but I then learned about some scary stalkers she has at the minute and how one has gone dark and they can't find him. Combined with the terrorist plot and Trump's hatred of her, I think it's for physical safety.

She's getting older (not meaning anything bad by it, I'm the same age) and settling down. I think many of us get a bit less brash and out there as we age and get married, have children etc.

She's not that long off the Eras tour which was over 18 months long and frankly must have been exhausting, she's got a new album coming out so clearly she's been working on that for a while, plus as others have mentioned she's also had issues with threats and stalkers. And now she has a wedding to plan.

I don't think it's inconceivable that she just wants some downtime away and doesn't want to get drawn into anything else right now.

It could be that having toured the world and worked arse off for a couple of years day after day after day she's just taking things a bit easier and not actually repositioning or reframing anything at all?

People change!

People are allowed grow and change and Taylor is no different. We’re the same age, she first rose to fame around 16 maybe? Now she’s 35/36. Of course she’s changed.

Maybe she’s returning to her wholesome country roots?? Or was it ok when it was Country conservative…?

I’ve not followed T Swift closely but I think for anyone, it would be a bit worrying if over 20 years, they hadn’t changed…

Nesting.

hmm, true she probably is exhausted after the tour. But I overheard overheard two older teens, students perhaps, in Pret describing her as Spotify for divorcees and laughing, I though Oh dear ! This is perhaps the beginning of the end?

Interesting question. I like Taylor Swift a lot, think she's an interesting person.

I think she's always been a bit of each - smart, feminist and left-leaning, but also enjoys being the "glossy all American girlfriend" and has sung about being in this kind of role in relationships many times over the years. And why not? You can enjoy being feminine and love your country whilst also being a feminist.

I guess she and Travis as a unit do need to be a bit careful. I don't think Travis has very Republican beliefs but in his job he probably needs to just not talk about politics. I think both of them appeal to people on both sides of the political spectrum.

Also as someone else said it's a safety issue - if I was a high-profile person in the US right now I wouldn't be speaking out about Trump.

Will be interesting to see what she does at the next US election.

I think from the Eras tour you could see a pretty wide range of ages amongst the fans.

But also as she gets older (not that she’s old, she’s my age! She’s just not 17 anymore) it would probably be expected that her fanbase would be a bit older. A lot of the fans are around her age and so grew up listening to her music.

I’m not really sure what “she’s Spotify for divorcees” means. Spotify isn’t an artist. Surely a more coherent comment would say “she’s Sabrina carpenter/Olivia Rodrigo etc for divorcees”. Also I really dislike a criticism that is based on “haha that’s just for sad old women”.

Spotify for divorcees

Haha. I mean maybe there's a bit of truth in this and maybe it's no bad thing. My teen daughters quite like her but she's definitely not the coolest artist among kids anymore. But does that matter? She's 35 and I think her music has aged/grown with her in a good way. She's not trying to be 22 anymore (see what I did there?) and I think her music appeals to people across the age range.

She hasn't changed. She's always been like that. Family-orientated, conservative/republican (not right wing but right of centre.) She's a privileged upper middle class American who comes from wealth/old money, so of course she's going to be traditional and conservative. You can still be passionate about womens rights/a feminist without being liberal/left wing you know!

The left-wing Taylor never existed.

I think she isn't quite the critical thinker she tries to make herself out to be and yes, a lot of her moves are business moves. I do think the relationship with TK is genuine though, but not long ago she was dancing around with drag queens (no trans identifying females, note), and telling us we need to be pro the trans agenda - even if it undermines women's rights (strange from a woman). So honestly I don't really trust much of what TS projects. She seems to constantly lose friends, which is a bit of a red flag too. Personally I think she wants to be with Kelce and sees an opportunity in the Trumpian moment to capture back some of conservatives she lost when she went woke.

What I find interesting is that Dolly Parton has NEVER spoken about politics throughout her career. And she's utterly beloved by everyone (including myself)

So why is there so much pressure on Taylor to speak out?

centre-right women can be feminists too, though.

She will have been advised to tread very carefully after the Vienna incident I expect, it probably hit her very hard. We won't be privy to her security details and threats.
I get the impression Travis is probably a bit left wing too. I'm sure they're both playing the long game.

I can’t imagine why you’d care so much?

She's settling down and her life is probably changing and her goals and values change with that. I know I've changed as I became a mother etc isn't it quite normal

Is it? She wrote a track called "so high school" and a lot of her lyrics seem pretty teen to me (me!, for example).

I find the whole set up strange - so many blind items inferred she is gay. She has all these exes but seemingly they are all lavender relationships. Even this new one seems all fake too. I think she is incredibly savvy with her marketing and likes to play up she is down to earth whereas actually she's a very savvy businesswoman. Same goes for Ed Sheeran - again very chilled, relaxed, man of the people. A very carefully crafted image. No one is very real these days