From All-American Girl to Anti-Hero: How Violent Extremists Have Targeted Taylor Swift
Taylor Swift performed at Gillette Stadium in May as part of the US Era's Tour. Photo by Stephen Mease at Unsplash.
This August, two young girls and two adults were murdered at a Taylor Swift-themed yoga and dance event in Southport, UK. Shortly after that, Swift canceled three arena shows in Vienna due to a terrorist bomb threat from Islamic extremists. The freedom, joy, female camaraderie, and independence that Taylor Swift's concerts represent are thorns in the side of extremists.
Like most musicians in the early aughts, Taylor Swift was coached to be apolitical. A few years before Swift hit the music scene, Texan country band The Chicks (previously known as The Dixie Chicks) had spoken out against the Iraq War on stage, a move leading to backlash and death threats from the largely right-wing country music community and blacklisting by multiple radio stations. In a 2009 interview, Swift recounted advice she received from her label on talking politics – advice commonly given in the industry after The Chicks’ earlier controversies: “Just do not get involved, no matter what.”
While Taylor Swift steadfastly maintained her apolitical stance, her heartland persona and blonde/blue-eyed aesthetic began to garner the attention of the far-right. She became the subject of memes that set her likeness next to quotes from Adolf Hitler and received unwanted praise as a symbol of white supremacy — some sources eventually claimed she was a secret Trump supporter.
Andrew Anglin of the white supremacy website Daily Stormer referred to her as an “Aryan goddess.” Milo Yiannopoulis named her as an “alt-right pop icon” in an article in Breitbart. Extremist Facebook groups, such as “Taylor Swift for Fascist Europe,” espoused that Swift embodied the true “Aryan spirit.” Anglin went so far as to claim she was “the anti-Miley. While Miley is out having gang-bangs with colored gentlemen, she is at home with her cat reading Jane Austen.”
As the right was constructing a fantasy of an Aryan world ruled by Taylor Swift, events in her own life prompted her to break her political silence. In 2017, Swift testified against a DJ who groped her, counter-suing him for $1 to make it clear the suit was a stand against misogyny, not about money, solidifying a spot with fellow #MeToo movement “silence breakers” on the cover of Time magazine’s Person(s) of the Year issue. This seemingly shifted Swift’s view on celebrity political activism – soon, she was posting on social media in support of gun reform, Black Lives Matter, abortion, LGBTQ+ issues, and denouncing white supremacy.
Swift’s album “Reputation” is one of six disputed albums and has not been re-recorded.
Conservative commentators like Ben Shapiro criticized her political shift, accusing her of pandering. As Swift’s fame reached unprecedented heights and respective influence for most pop stars, much less a woman in her 30s who had spoken out about politics—rerecording some of her earlier albums to gain ownership of her stolen work, a music industry power move, and her record-breaking international Eras Tour, the highest grossing tour of all time and the first billion-dollar music tour—the quicker the right spiraled into what The Rolling Stone coined as an “enduring freakout,” rife with new attacks and conspiracy theories.
The same Taylor that Anglin had deified and praised for sitting “at home with her cat” was now being vilified, lumped into what JD Vance referred to as “a bunch of childless cat ladies.” Name-calling and public shaming are, unfortunately, common forms of political rhetoric used to normalize a deep misogyny that women like Swift have spent a career pushing back against. As a childless, unmarried, self-made billionaire who holds the attention of millions of people across the globe, she and her followers have become targets of a growing extremist right.
A common trope across extremist communities is the desire for subservient women to be controlled and defined by men. Swift sings of heartbreaks and female joy, but the men in her songs serve mostly as lessons or plot devices. Her placement of the male as a supporting role, or even an afterthought, in the lives of women and her position as a joyful, powerful woman inspiring women and girls around the world to embrace their girlhood has enraged chauvinists and extremists from across the spectrum. The extremist reactions to Swift have sadly had a devastating impact.
The ISIS attack on the Bataclan Theatre in Paris in 2015, the 2017 attack on Manchester Arena, targeting an Ariana Grande concert, and similar attacks targeting convening spaces, concerts, festivals, and venues around the world demonstrate the risk the entertainment industry faces from terrorists and violent extremists. Terrorist attacks are often performative in nature, seeking to draw attention and spread fear through their targeting. The selection of targets also demonstrates what extremists seek to destroy — freedom, joy, and the power of young people celebrating life in spite of the restrictions authoritarian ideology seeks to impose.
This intention was visible in the police presence and security measures taken at Swift’s concerts in London following the Vienna cancellations, in statements from concerned fans and parents fearing for the safety of their loved ones, and likely in unused tickets. Still, the shows in London served as a demonstration of resilience against the oppression of extremists.
While terrorism is rare, its impact is devastating. Terrorism kills, destroys families, maims, and alters the lives of survivors forever. These costs are in and of themselves unacceptable. Additionally, threats and attacks also deter travel, tourism, and participation in concerts and public events. This has devastated economies. The drop in tourism following the 2017 Las Vegas shooting led to billions in losses. Attacks in Tunisia and Indonesia led to the collapse of economies and the loss of hundreds of thousands of jobs.
At Revontulet, we monitor extremist networks and provide intelligence and analysis to keep communities safe. Working with organizers, law enforcement, and local stakeholders, we have contributed to the safety of large public gatherings, festivals, and concerts. Increased safety and comfort at events facilitates job security across the tourism industry, helping economies surrounding events and entertainment. Additionally, we aim to ensure that people can attend events and enjoy life without fear.
“The last thing we want is for concert-goers to have to think about terrorism while enjoying a night out and a great performance. ”
The last thing we want is for concert-goers to have to think about terrorism while enjoying a night out and a great performance.
In attracting the fury and fear of extremists, leading to attacks and threats against events associated with her name, her power, and presence demonstrate that Swift and the entertainment sector as a whole remain a target for terrorists. Despite speaking out about extremism on the world stage following the Southport attack and cancellations in Vienna, Swift maintained her stance against getting involved in politics at home throughout her 2023-2024 tour, noting in her Vienna statement that she will stay silent as a means of restraint to protect her fans.
Conspiracies have circulated through right-wing media outlets that she and her partner, National Football League player Travis Kelce, were somehow part of a grand scheme to keep Biden in office. The Rolling Stone reported that “...Trump was planning a ‘holy war’ against Swift should she endorse any of his 2024 rivals, and privately boasted that he was ‘more popular’ than the entertainer.”
Trump took advantage of Swift’s silence in August, posting fake, AI-generated images on his Truth Social account of Swift dressed as Uncle Sam, with the words “TAYLOR WANTS YOU TO VOTE FOR DONALD TRUMP” emblazoned across the image, echoing the United States’ famous WWI enlistment propaganda posters. Other pictures included young women wearing “Swifties for Trump” shirts over Trump’s caption “I accept.”
Swift’s silence was finally broken on September 10th, moments after Former President Trump and Vice President Harris finished their first (and only) presidential debate. In an Instagram post, Swift voiced concerns over her AI-altered image being used to spread misinformation, writing, “The simplest way to combat misinformation is with the truth. I will be casting my vote for Kamala Harris and Tim Walz in the 2024 Presidential Election.” This further enraged the far-right.
Taylor Swift serves as a case study of the intersection between politics and entertainment and, by extension, the link between entertainment, violent extremism, and terrorism. Her persona and audience underline the highly gendered aspect of violent extremism seeking to destroy female liberty and joy. We see this across the political spectrum. Through her success, Swift has become the thing extremists fear the most — a self-made, single woman who holds the power to swing elections.
Revontulet is a counterterrorism company. Working with companies and communities, we assist clients in understanding the terrorist and extremist threats they face and provide insights, intelligence, and analysis to mitigate harm.
Get in touch and schedule a call to learn more about how we can keep your company, events, and community safe.