# 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:** 9\ **Page:** 52
**Author:** ![nearwildheaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2024, 4:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-someone-explain-the-taylor-swift-phenomenon-to-me/981339/1022 "2024-03-18T04:14:11Z")
I just encountered some online chatter stating that a lot of Swifties who attended her concerts are reporting that later on, they have no memory of being there, and if they do remember, they can’t remember any specific details, and no, illicit substances were not involved. Has anyone else heard about this? That’s creepy if it’s true. Now, this story is comparing the experience to things like people who say their wedding day was a giant blur, which is also understandable. It’s a big event and things can get fuzzy. > **[Taylor Swift fans who experienced 'post-concert amnesia' may have better luck...](https://abcnews.go.com/GMA/Wellness/taylor-swift-fans-experienced-post-concert-amnesia-luck/story?id=103839859)** > > Some of Taylor Swift's Eras Tour attendees say they had trouble remembering her concert. ---
**Author:** ![Alessan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alessan/32/465_2.png) [@Alessan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alessan)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2024, 8:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-someone-explain-the-taylor-swift-phenomenon-to-me/981339/1023 "2024-03-18T08:32:24Z")
Seems like a good reason to see her again! ---
**Author:** ![BlankSlate](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/blankslate/32/80_2.png) [@BlankSlate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BlankSlate)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2024, 10:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-someone-explain-the-taylor-swift-phenomenon-to-me/981339/1024 "2024-03-18T10:58:15Z")
PTSD? Stockholm Syndrome? ---
**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:** [March 18, 2024, 11:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-someone-explain-the-taylor-swift-phenomenon-to-me/981339/1025 "2024-03-18T11:04:03Z")
Sounds more like Stendhal Syndrome to me. > **[Stendhal syndrome](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stendhal_syndrome)** > > Stendhal syndrome, Stendhal's syndrome or Florence syndrome is a psychosomatic condition involving rapid heartbeat, fainting, confusion, and even hallucinations, allegedly occurring when individuals become exposed to objects, artworks, or phenomena of great beauty. > The affliction is named after the 19th-century French author Stendhal (pseudonym of Marie-Henri Beyle), who described his experience with the phenomenon during his 1817 visit to Florence in his book Naples and Florence: A Journey fr... ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2024, 11:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-someone-explain-the-taylor-swift-phenomenon-to-me/981339/1026 "2024-03-18T11:53:47Z")
It reminds me a little bit of something like “highway hypnosis,” when you get so in-the-zone that hours of driving can go by which you have absolutely no memory of. I’m not sure the mechanism would be exactly the same, as one deals with overstimulation and the other is much more mundane, but I think both have in common a sense of intense concentration. At any rate, if you’ve ever experienced highway hypnosis, you know how odd of a feeling it is. I remember as a college student driving to Green Bay from Chicago and my memories checking out somewhere around Milwaukee and not returning until about an hour and a half later just outside of Green Bay. Disconcerting, to say the least. ---
**Author:** ![Gordon\_G](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/3da27b/32.png) [@Gordon\_G](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gordon_G)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2024, 12:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-someone-explain-the-taylor-swift-phenomenon-to-me/981339/1027 "2024-03-18T12:23:47Z")
My favorite songs and favorite artists date back to the 1960’s, which would seem to put me in the same frame as the OP, hostility. But when doing anything with my adult kids we listen to their music, and some of their songs and singers appeal to me. Heading this list is . . . Taylor Swift! Just listening to her songs I’d not be too impressed, but I watch her videos. She is VERY creative, very personable. (And, by encouraging her young American followers to register and vote, she may be a Hero!) Read these lyrics: [https://genius.com/Taylor-swift-blank-space-lyrics](https://genius.com/Taylor-swift-blank-space-lyrics) which she wrote in response (as a caricature?) to memes that developed about her personal life. ---
**Author:** ![Yllaria](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yllaria/32/3452_2.png) [@Yllaria](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yllaria)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2024, 6:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-someone-explain-the-taylor-swift-phenomenon-to-me/981339/1028 "2024-03-18T18:08:31Z")
I’ve read many magazine articles that claim that the brain tags memories in several ways. One way is to tag them according to the emotions you’re experiencing. The process of recall uses the tags, and therefore it’s easier to call up memories when you’re in a similar emotional state and harder to call them up if you’re not. I’d imagine people don’t regularly stay in an Attending A Taylor Swift Concert emotional state. This is why people take photos and buy t-shirts. ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2024, 5:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-someone-explain-the-taylor-swift-phenomenon-to-me/981339/1029 "2024-04-30T05:57:46Z")
Thought this might be interesting for this thread: > **[Taylor Swift Claims Record Top 14 Spots on Billboard Hot 100, Led by...](https://www.billboard.com/lists/taylor-swift-hot-100-top-14-fortnight-post-malone-record/swift-at-nos-1-through-14-on-the-hot-100/)** > > Taylor Swift makes more history on the Hot 100 thanks to her new album, 'The Tortured Poets Department.' ---
**Author:** ![Lucas\_Jackson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lucas_jackson/32/303_2.png) [@Lucas\_Jackson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lucas_Jackson)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2024, 11:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-someone-explain-the-taylor-swift-phenomenon-to-me/981339/1030 "2024-05-22T23:59:33Z")
> [@Darren\_Garrison](#): > > Hey, I saw Boxcar Willie in concert as a child. Got his autograph. All in all, I think I prefer Taylor Swift. I like old country, and don’t hate Boxcar Willy but yeah, his shows can be a little one trick pony - gimme Taylor any day. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-someone-explain-the-taylor-swift-phenomenon-to-me/981339.md?page=51)