Opinion | How Taylor Swift taught me to be a stronger woman

 Despite being a successful woman in the music industry, singer-songwriter Taylor Swift faces frequent misogyny from critics who argue she only writes break-up songs. Wiki Commons

In second grade, my favorite part of the day was the ride home after school when I would eagerly scan the radio stations to find Taylor Swift’s hit single “Love Story.” I gleefully squealed every lyric off-key and giggled as I begged my parents to turn the volume higher. 

I would call her my big sister because “we have the same name!”

I’m not exactly sure how logic worked in my head at 8-years-old, but I know I was thrilled nonetheless with our connection.

The first concert I ever attended was Swift’s “Speak Now” tour. I performed her songs during elementary school talent shows with my friends. She shaped who I was as a child, and in turn, she influenced who I grew up to be. 

But little did young me realize just how much Taylor Swift would guide how I view the world. 

Because of Swift’s popularity, feelings toward her are very polarized. In the media, it seems someone is either a diehard “Swiftie” or they’re rolling their eyes with a snarky comment when “Shake It Off” plays in the grocery store. 

Unfortunately, being a successful woman in the music industry means facing inevitable misogynistic backlash. Swift recalls not noticing sexism when she first entered the industry as she was still being seen as a child. But once her success began to grow after releasing her hit album “Red,” she suddenly became a woman who was scrutinized for “only writing break up songs.” 

Although this remark is a favorite among haters of Swift, I have done the math, and I’m here to officially say: this is false. 

I happily took it upon myself to sit down and listen to her discography in its entirety. I made a note whenever a song’s lyrics were reminiscent of the cold hurt after a breakup. Swift’s song total comes out to around 182 (excluding songs she has written for movies and is featured in). 

Of those 182 songs, only about 50 (give or take, based on how one interprets them) are about a break up. This means around 27% of her songs are about break ups.

In addition to her collection of breakup songs, Swift uses her songs “Fifteen,” “The Best Day” and “Never Grow Up” to display themes of innocence and adolescence. “Look What You Made Me Do” and “This Is Why We Can’t Have Nice Things” both emulate the feeling of being the bigger person when someone has wronged you. 

Her newest albums, “folklore” and “evermore” are only loosely pulled from her own experiences, and instead explore the art of storytelling through songwriting. 

I can recall gaping at the screen during the 2009 VMA’s as Kanye West swaggered on stage in the middle of Swift receiving an award. West exclaimed that Beyonce should have been the one to win, thus publicly humiliating Swift and starting the Swift v. West feud, which would permanently build a wall between the respective fandoms. 

West proceeded to write a song titled “Famous” with an infamously sexist line about being the only reason Swift is famous. Which, in my opinion, can’t be true considering she already had countless Grammys under her belt.

Swift is not the only female artist in the industry who is held to a double standard because she is a woman. Olivia Rodrigo is only 18-years-old, but her ridicule is already reminiscent of Swift’s. Although Rodrigo has only written one album, the media was quick to jump to the conclusion that her song writing knew only the bounds of mourning a lover who broke her heart.

Swift has also had her fair share of negative experiences with the press; notably, in 2015, Swift was asked by a reporter if she would be going home with anyone after the Grammys. Swift angrily glared at the journalist, saying she would actually be hanging out with friends. 

Despite the large amount of misogynistic hate Swift has received over the years, there has been no shortage of comebacks on her end. Swift’s songs “mad woman” and “The Man” both encapsulate the feeling of what it means to be a successful woman in an industry built to support men. 

Additionally, Swift announced in 2019 that she would be re-recording her first six albums in order to “regain artistic and financial control.” This decision came after Scooter Braun, owner of Big Machine Records — and coincidentally, Kanye West’s former manager — refused to sell Swift her own masters (the rights to original song recordings), which meant Swift was making a fraction of the profits from her songs being used in movies, played on the radio or streamed.

Amid the seemingly never-ending sexism Swift has faced throughout her career, she has proven that despite the hatred, it is important to stand up for who you are and what you believe in. Swift has taught me the importance of independence and loving myself. I am forever grateful that 8-year-old me chose a role model who I can still look up to at age 20.