She is the undisputed queen of the music industry and has even studied at universities. Its influence, increased tenfold through social networks, is noticeable on the economy, society, sport and politics. Taylor Swift could even play a role in the next US presidential election.
Taylor Swift, what does this change for you? / What does this change for you? / 6 mins / Wednesday at 4:59 p.m
“It is frightening! According to a poll, a fifth of her fans will vote for Taylor Swift's favorite candidate, whoever that is,” worried Fox News host Charly Arnolt in early February.
At 34 years old and with an 11th album due out in April, Taylor Swift is on the most profitable tour in music history. Taylor Swift was born into a wealthy family in Pennsylvania and grew up on a Christmas tree farm. She benefited from her parents' unconditional and financial support.
Hundreds of millions of fans
A pop star enshrined in her time, she is also an influencer with around 281 million followers on Instagram alone. These are the “Swifties”.
“The Swifties in my picture are almost all young women, millennials, between 16 and 40 years old, the majority target group, mainly white women. We observe this when we watch the videos of their concerts that fill the stadiums,” she explained to Virginie Nussbaum, journalist for Le Temps, in the Forum show. “But she has quite a large following, both in the city and in the country, from different political sides.”
Great debate (video) – Can singer Taylor Swift influence the US presidential election?
This image of a powerful, feminist woman who doesn't hesitate to go on the defensive — like during her standoff with streaming platforms — speaks to this generation and GenerationZ.
Political influence
Taylor Swift fans have real political influence. The Washington Post, for example, asserts that the Swifties played a role in the victory of outsider Bernardo Arévalo in the presidential election in Guatemala. He was committed to fighting corruption in a country considered to be controlled by the mafia.
For the next presidential election in the United States, a Newsweek magazine poll estimates that 18% of voters would be influenced by Taylor Swift's opinion, whether they are Democrats or Republicans.
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