On Taylor Swift Receiving TIME Person of the Year
Taylorsplaining her contributions - and where she's controversial
On Thursday I got an email from Pops, which he sent to his siblings as well, asking about Taylor Swift receiving TIME Magazine’s Person of the Year honor.
Daughter dear (+family),
I am total failure at pop culture. Can you please explain to me how Taylor Swift makes the cut for the above award?
There must be something I do not know about her. Like she donated billions to orphans in Ukraine or Gaza or Sudan?
She hangs out with the Kardashian's sometimes. Or used to. She wears some sexy wardrobe stuff.
Can she sing at same level as Barbra Streisand?
Not urgent. No need for immediate response.
Pops
On Saturday morning, I took about an hour1 to write and research my response. I’m not a diehard Swiftie, but I enjoy her music and tend to stay informed about what she’s doing.2 My response is below, with images and a few updated links for reference.
Father dear and family:
I'm writing this while listening to Taylor Swift, so perhaps I am slightly biased. TIME's choice makes sense if we look at her role in three key areas over the last 4-5 years. But I also see how she can be controversial. More on that in a moment.
Voting Rights
There was a 2020 Netflix documentary on Taylor, Miss Americana, that was filmed over the course of 2018-2019. There are scenes from 2018 in which she debates with her team at length about speaking out about Tennessee politics and Senator Marsha Blackburn's voting history related to women’s issues and reproductive rights. Taylor ultimately decides to say something on her Instagram account in November 2018. Encouraging her fan base to register to vote was considered extremely effective, and there's data suggesting that when Taylor posts about voting, her young fans listen and register to vote in huge numbers.
IP Rights
About four years ago, Taylor's former record label Big Machine was purchased by record executive/talent manager Scooter Braun. Part of the purchase included the rights to Taylor's master recordings for her first 6 studio albums, released from 2006-2017. The conditions under which the label and her recordings were sold are a bit unclear for me, as are her attempts to purchase the masters, but in losing the rights to music she had written and recorded, Taylor vowed she would re-release her versions of those albums. Over the course of 4 years, she did just that, with the re-releases of each album achieving incredible success for sales and streaming. It's considered a landmark event for artists in terms of owning the rights to their works. Further reading: Taylor’s Tumblr entry on the Big Machine Sale; Wikipedia entry on the sale of Taylor’s masters; Buzzfeed article on Taylor’s decision to release her versions.
Charitable Works
The Moneyinc article [that Aunt Gigi shared in her email response] covers a lot of Taylor's charitable works, but I'm stymied as to why they didn't offer links to corroborate their article. This article about her donations to food banks and other charities offers a bit more detail. On her recent Eras tour, she's been donating to food banks in the cities she visits.
All of these things aside, her November 2023 concert dates in Rio de Janeiro were during an extreme heat wave, and a 23-year-old fan, Ana Clara Benevides, died due to heat exhaustion. Attendees reported that water was not being dispersed to concertgoers and that air flow in the stadium was exceptionally poor. Her team did not handle the situation well3, and since then I have noticed her Instagram account (which I follow) has limited comments, which was likely advised by a crisis PR team. There's also been a crisis PR expert, Molly McPherson, who posted a TikTok video analyzing Taylor's public response to the Rio fan's death.
A lot more I could say about this, but I have given you a lot to read and consider. You may find the legal stuff about the music rights issue the most interesting.
Corinne
Pops responded later in the day:
I never knew even 10% of that stuff. Her political stuff is a plus. I presume she was negative on senator Blackburn of TN. [Ed. Note: I hadn’t clarified that I was referring to US Senator Marsha Blackburn in my email response to Pops.] Her strategy to get rights to her early recordings is noteworthy. Thanks for getting me informed. While I have my doubts whether she was best pick, you have convinced me she was a worthy pick.
Final(ish) Thoughts
The TIME article mentions that Taylor is a master storyteller, and I agree with that assessment. Her songs speak to fans of all ages, gender identities, and backgrounds. Part of being a storyteller is knowing what information to share and what to withhold, and how to weave a tale that incorporates mystery, tension, drama, and comedy. She’s highly skilled in that regard, and if she hadn’t been successful as a musician, I think she would have done exceptionally well in marketing or public relations. Taylor’s 33rd birthday is this Wednesday—I wish her well, and I look forward to seeing what she comes up with next.
Pops is an attorney, so I often find it necessary to provide evidence to back up any statements I make.
Okay, maybe I am more of a Swiftie than I care to admit. But damn if her lyrics in “All Too Well” don’t hit me right in my romantic relationships databank.
There’s conflicting reports regarding how Swift’s team handled the aftermath of Ana Clara Benevides’s death. I’ve since read that she visited the family.