Why Taylor Swift is so popular
Hi! I’m Katie, and I’m a cultural and social psychologist—but you can think of me as your BFF with a PhD. I live in the desert of Texas alongside the cacti, roadrunners, and horned lizards. If you’re looking to understand your inner landscape and the whirlwind of the world around you, I hope you find something of value here. Make sure to subscribe—and you won’t miss a beat! Thank you so much for being here.
You hit play on Spotify’s Today’s Top Hits, and there‘s Cruel Summer again.
You plop onto the couch, glazed wings in hand, ready to catch the latest football game—only to see her on the screen cheering on the Chiefs.
You’re walking through campus. You look up and see the signage for the next Swiftie Society meeting.
Everywhere you turn these days, it seems like Taylor Swift is there—with her Bitch Pack friends called The Swifties.
What is it that makes Taylor Swift so viral these days?
Why do Swifties find her so delicious? Magnetic? Perhaps some even might say—bewitching?
How does she seem to so effortlessly take the everyday pop music enthusiast and swiftly turn her into a feral fan?
In this first edition of Swiftie Psychology, I’ll introduce my take on the psychology behind why Taylor Swift is so popular—with The Swifties (and non-Swifties alike).
*Quick disclaimer: as a self-proclaimed Swiftie myself, any and perhaps all of this piece is inherently a bit biased. 😁
It’s undeniable that Taylor Swift’s current popularity goes beyond the norm of most musical artists.