When I first heard that pop star Taylor Swift had paid off a fan’s student loans, I was honestly and truly impressed. The average student loan debt is around 30 thousand dollars, and can easily pass six digits for some folks, and knowing that struggle all too well myself, that kind of spontaneous kindness struck me as really neat. When Evan wrote about that on Friday, reporting the payment was less than 2 grand, it kinda took the wind out of my sails. Don’t get me wrong- I think Evan hit the nail on the dead in saying that anything good is good, but I still couldn’t help thinking:
“Is that it?”
Still, I decided to suspend my hostilities towards the woman and actually do some more research into her- fully prepared to be proven wrong, or to admit that my dislike stems purely from taste in music.
Still, it seemed the deeper I dug, the more I’d keep returning to that same question.
“Is that it?”
Now back in November, Evan had written another post trying to defend Swift, arguing that her music isn’t for everyone (no argument), plenty of other singers have cashed in on lost-love themes (also true), and at the end of the day, she’s just being herself.
Problem is- I believe that.
While it’s entirely possible that Swift’s just another interchangeable, committee-designed pop figure, I’m completely willing to believe that she’s being who she is. Only who she is isn’t all that good.
Let me break it down here. Continue reading →
Posted in art, bizarreness, celebrity, history, media, money, morality, music, relationships, Youth
Tagged 1989, art, Bechdel Test, Billy Talent, criticism, critique, Cynicism, Discography, industrial, Jenny Lind, marketing, meaning, metal, music, nihilism, nihilist, nine inch nails, philanthropy, Pink Floyd, rock, Student Loan, Subject Material, Taylor Swift, The Wall, themes, Thomas Kincaide
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