Swift(ie) Judgement on Taylor Swift

I, a middle-aged dad with an IT job, wide-ranging musical tastes (most mainstream styles except hard-core country), and relentless daughter, have become a Swiftie. Perhaps not in the sense of submersion in the subculture of decoding secret messages and hating on her “enemies”, but definitely in an appreciation for her often genius lyrics, creative vision and execution, and skill in turning adversity to her advantage.

I can’t really call it “grace under fire”, because she can be truly savage in her revenge. But I admire how she lets her music be the expected emotional relief valve seemingly for the purpose of building the fortitude to see those who have (at least from her perspective) done her wrong as opponents in a massive chess game - one which she is determined to win. If something isn’t happening as she thinks it should, she takes action to fix it or sidestep it, or sometimes even changes the rules so that she can do her thing. That’s rare, especially for musicians who might be inclined to make diss tracks and not much else. Instead, she channels that frustration into constructive work that not only solves her immediate problems but disrupts industries to accomplish her aims and paves the way for others to do the same. All while still remaining a fan herself and a real, grounded person with the same insecurities as the rest of us as far as I can tell. Therefore, Swiftie.

Upon learning this fact, Jordan challenged me to write reviews of each of Swift’s albums. Why? Not sure, really, though she and I often have conversations about the music we listen to, so I suppose as an extension of that, it could make sense. While on vacation this week, I began with her self-titled first album.

Stay tuned!