# Can someone explain the Taylor Swift phenomenon to me? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** music\ **Created:** [March 19, 2023, 2:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-someone-explain-the-taylor-swift-phenomenon-to-me/981339 "2023-03-19T02:50:13Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 29
**Author:** ![Beckdawrek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beckdawrek/32/3647_2.png) [@Beckdawrek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beckdawrek)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2023, 9:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-someone-explain-the-taylor-swift-phenomenon-to-me/981339/562 "2023-11-04T21:56:47Z")
I don’t agree. Her voice is recognizable. Easily. That’s my biggest gripe about her. She sounds like herself, too much. Her ‘soundworld’ whatever that is. I argue with my Swifties around here about that all the time. But …it’s ultimately their choice to like her. So be it. ---
**Author:** ![martyg](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f475e1/32.png) [@martyg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/martyg)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2023, 10:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-someone-explain-the-taylor-swift-phenomenon-to-me/981339/563 "2023-11-04T22:52:50Z")
The way that i consume new pop music is through radio shows. She has come up but I only found out after I heard it, usually a few songs later. My point is that she doesn’t have anything about it that stands out as hers. Even Gayle with “ABCDEFU” sounded unique. Many new things I can tell who it is immediately. Whatever it is, I don’t hear it at all. ---
**Author:** ![Beckdawrek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beckdawrek/32/3647_2.png) [@Beckdawrek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beckdawrek)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2023, 10:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-someone-explain-the-taylor-swift-phenomenon-to-me/981339/564 "2023-11-04T22:57:04Z")
She’s the “It” ---
**Author:** ![Riemann](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/riemann/32/3133_2.png) [@Riemann](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Riemann)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2023, 10:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-someone-explain-the-taylor-swift-phenomenon-to-me/981339/565 "2023-11-04T22:58:16Z")
> [@Magiver](#): > > The Beatles were dripping with young women when they started. I was quite young at the time and saw them grow into a musical powerhouse. They have a distinct sound and yet their songs differ greatly. Ringo’s drumming is very distinctive and adds flavor to their music. They spent a great deal of time in the studio inventing new techniques in recording and it was noticeable to other major bands at the time. Some of your best friends are things liked by young women? ---
**Author:** ![Jophiel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jophiel/32/66_2.png) [@Jophiel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jophiel)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2023, 11:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-someone-explain-the-taylor-swift-phenomenon-to-me/981339/566 "2023-11-04T23:38:58Z")
> [@martyg](#): > > She has come up but I only found out after I heard it, usually a few songs later. My point is that she doesn’t have anything about it that stands out as hers. Huh, I’ve never had any issue noticing when a song is by her. I suspect that many of the “issues” people have with her (can’t tell it’s her, can’t tell songs part, etc) are more listener based than an innate flaw in her music. I can’t believe that I’m individually and uniquely talented in being able to notice a Taylor Swift song when I hear one. I believe you when you say you can’t tell when a song is by her. I just don’t think that’s necessarily because of her songs. ---
**Author:** ![Beckdawrek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beckdawrek/32/3647_2.png) [@Beckdawrek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beckdawrek)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2023, 11:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-someone-explain-the-taylor-swift-phenomenon-to-me/981339/567 "2023-11-04T23:50:12Z")
I get it. You were a music professional of some kind. You have a great body of knowledge about _your_ favorite music style. And probably much more. You’re not the end all, be all of other people’s taste. We have a lane in this life. It’s always nice to stay in your own. (Now tell us who you really are/were in the music biz 😊) ---
**Author:** ![Magiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4491bb/32.png) [@Magiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Magiver)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2023, 12:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-someone-explain-the-taylor-swift-phenomenon-to-me/981339/568 "2023-11-05T00:19:02Z")
> [@Riemann](#): > > Some of your best friends are things liked by young women? what? are you drunk posting? ---
**Author:** ![Magiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4491bb/32.png) [@Magiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Magiver)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2023, 12:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-someone-explain-the-taylor-swift-phenomenon-to-me/981339/569 "2023-11-05T00:27:48Z")
I’ve gone through to the thread again to see if I missed anything. The closest thing to an answer of why people like her is her lyrics. The closest thing to the Swift phenomenon was probably what Puzzlegal posted. She is a product of her own closely honed persona and it’s a result of her business savvy. The 2 are related because she carefully focuses on her fans and relates well to them to the point she interacts with them. She’s now at a point in her career where she can continue the same path while venturing into more and more side collaborations with other bands. ---
**Author:** ![martyg](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f475e1/32.png) [@martyg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/martyg)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2023, 12:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-someone-explain-the-taylor-swift-phenomenon-to-me/981339/570 "2023-11-05T00:33:58Z")
> [@Jophiel](#): > > I believe you when you say you can’t tell when a song is by her. I just don’t think that’s necessarily because of her songs. And I agree with you 100% Nothing is inherent in music … if you intentionally try to make a sad piece of music, you are making it with your idea of what that is, but not everyone is going react to the same overall soundworld as being sad. You see this all the time – e.g. “Every Breath You Take” (a stalker song) being played at a wedding. What I have identified as Taylor Swift has nothing to stick to me to make it memorable. I have my own likes (angular disparate rock music, musique concrete, raver stuff, industrial) and dislikes (most classic rock) and yes that’s going to colour my perception. There’s nothing to grab me to say “this is extraordinary” and I feel she’s just plain overhyped. Someone backed her and bought her way to where she is now. Seems I remember Public Enemy’s song about not believing the hype. Chuck D had a great point with that. ---
**Author:** ![Smapti](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smapti/32/17938_2.png) [@Smapti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smapti)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2023, 12:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-someone-explain-the-taylor-swift-phenomenon-to-me/981339/571 "2023-11-05T00:42:48Z")
> [@martyg](#): > > Someone backed her and bought her way to where she is now. Not really. She was a very goal-oriented preteen who essentially started her own record label in order to get her music out there. > **[Taylor Swift | Early life](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taylor_Swift#Early_life)** > > Taylor Alison Swift was born on December 13, 1989, in West Reading, Pennsylvania. She is named after singer-songwriter James Taylor. Her father, Scott Kingsley Swift, is a former stockbroker for Merrill Lynch and her mother, Andrea Gardner Swift (née Finlay), is a former homemaker who previously worked as a mutual fund marketing executive. Taylor has a younger brother, actor Austin Swift, and is of Scottish, German, and Italian descent. Their maternal grandmother, Marjo Swift spent her early year... ---
**Author:** ![Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/left_hand_of_dorkness/32/7156_2.png) [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Left_Hand_of_Dorkness)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2023, 12:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-someone-explain-the-taylor-swift-phenomenon-to-me/981339/572 "2023-11-05T00:50:37Z")
As much as I’m in the “She’s done some pretty amazing stuff, and people are being weird and snooty and condescending about it because she’s a pretty woman” camp, I also kinda compare her to Tori Amos–and what I love about Tori is her _weirdness_. Yeah, Tori’s voice is instantly recognizable, but she changes style a lot. I’m a lot more excited to hear a Tori Amos song than a Taylor Swift song, and I suspect I always will be. And at the same time, I grew up listening to Amos and not Swift, and that almost certainly figures into my attitude as well. ---
**Author:** ![Beckdawrek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beckdawrek/32/3647_2.png) [@Beckdawrek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beckdawrek)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2023, 1:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-someone-explain-the-taylor-swift-phenomenon-to-me/981339/573 "2023-11-05T01:13:02Z")
I hate only rap more than I hate all your music favorites. But that’s ok. I don’t have to like it. I imagine you would despise what I listen to. And that’s just fine, as well. I won’t expound on my choices because it’s just not necessary. You cannot prescribe,explain or possibly understand why someone likes what they like. They just do. All this fan crap is just that, crap. She’s popular ever how she got there, She’s there. It’s too bad so many people gnash their teeth and wring their hands about it. Wonder why that is? ETA: the reason there is music is to be heard by others. This is why there are fans. They are there to hear. They buy the recordings, to listen to. If it’s a recorded thing laying on a shelf, is it truly music? I don’t think it is. ---
**Author:** ![Maserschmidt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/maserschmidt/32/18829_2.png) [@Maserschmidt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Maserschmidt)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2023, 1:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-someone-explain-the-taylor-swift-phenomenon-to-me/981339/574 "2023-11-05T01:46:00Z")
More than 570 posts. Do we have it yet? ---
**Author:** ![martyg](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f475e1/32.png) [@martyg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/martyg)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2023, 2:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-someone-explain-the-taylor-swift-phenomenon-to-me/981339/575 "2023-11-05T02:22:02Z")
> [@Smapti](#): > > Not really. She was a very goal-oriented preteen who essentially started her own record label in order to get her music out there. Said like a fan. All credit to the named artist and absolutely nothing for those that got her there. She didn’t do it alone. ---
**Author:** ![Beckdawrek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beckdawrek/32/3647_2.png) [@Beckdawrek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beckdawrek)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2023, 2:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-someone-explain-the-taylor-swift-phenomenon-to-me/981339/576 "2023-11-05T02:45:59Z")
Hmmm? I don’t know. I find it hard to believe @Smapti is a Swifty. Are you a fan Smap? (ETA: I just read your earlier posts, I guess you are a fan) ---
**Author:** ![Jophiel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jophiel/32/66_2.png) [@Jophiel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jophiel)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2023, 2:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-someone-explain-the-taylor-swift-phenomenon-to-me/981339/577 "2023-11-05T02:46:58Z")
> [@martyg](#): > > She didn’t do it alone. Jinkies, what a cutting indictment. You hear that, Swifites? Tay-Tay didn’t single-handedly direct every aspect of her music career without help! Ha! Checkmate! ---
**Author:** ![Beckdawrek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beckdawrek/32/3647_2.png) [@Beckdawrek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beckdawrek)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2023, 2:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-someone-explain-the-taylor-swift-phenomenon-to-me/981339/578 "2023-11-05T02:54:30Z")
No musician who ever sold anything or had a paid gig did it alone. Clearly. ---
**Author:** ![Smapti](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smapti/32/17938_2.png) [@Smapti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smapti)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2023, 2:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-someone-explain-the-taylor-swift-phenomenon-to-me/981339/579 "2023-11-05T02:57:56Z")
I wouldn’t call myself a “Swiftie” and I find her pre-2014 albums much more enjoyable than her pop output, but I like her and I saw her live twice back when she was selling out arenas instead of stadiums. ( I may have mentioned that several times.) ---
**Author:** ![Smapti](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smapti/32/17938_2.png) [@Smapti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smapti)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2023, 2:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-someone-explain-the-taylor-swift-phenomenon-to-me/981339/580 "2023-11-05T02:59:11Z")
> [@martyg](#): > > She didn’t do it alone. And Bach didn’t even invent the contrabassoon, either. ---
**Author:** ![needscoffee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/needscoffee/32/1076_2.png) [@needscoffee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/needscoffee)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2023, 3:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-someone-explain-the-taylor-swift-phenomenon-to-me/981339/581 "2023-11-05T03:00:17Z")
> [@Smapti](#): > > And Bach didn’t even invent the contrabassoon, either What a slacker! [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-someone-explain-the-taylor-swift-phenomenon-to-me/981339.md?page=28) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-someone-explain-the-taylor-swift-phenomenon-to-me/981339.md?page=30)