Preface: I was asked by my editor to write a real-time reaction to Taylor Swift’s new music video, “Shake it Off.” If you want to see the list and read my comments, please skip to the “START” portion of the article. Everything before that is an explanation about my current relationship with Ms. Swift, and is not required for you to enjoy my bitchy commentary on the video itself.
I am not, and have never been, a Taylor Swift fan. My introduction to Ms. Swift came in middle school, when friends of mine began posting the lyrics to “Teardrops On My Guitar” as cryptic Facebook statuses. The first time I actually heard the song was when a friend, shocked that I had never heard the song, played it for me on her iPod on the way home from school. When we got to the titular line of the song, I burst out laughing. My friend, who had previously been looking out of the window pensively, completely immersed in the song, was shocked at my reaction. “Haven’t you ever felt this way?!” she asked, incredulous. My reply was then (and is still now) a resounding “Nope!”
Because I was born and raised as a strong black woman, it has been instilled in me that I don’t need no man. With every Taylor Swift song I heard, it became more and more apparent that this was a girl who completely needed a man, and had the odd habit of writing songs when she did not get said man.
I have also taken great pains to never come off as overly needy, whiny or emotional – incidentally, these are the first three adjectives I would use if someone asked me to describe Ms. Swift’s music. This is not to say that I am some “cool girl” who is above feelings; I just believe that all feelings should be disguised behind a wall of snark and only expressed in the safe and private environment of a therapist’s office. Some might say that Taylor Swift is a stronger person than I am, because she wears her emotions on her sleeve, and shares her honest stories of heartbreak without shame – those people would be wrong, but it’s a solid enough argument.
Recently, Swift’s image has shifted from a mopey every-girl to somewhat of a feminist hero. News of Swift’s feminism surprised me – as a self-proclaimed feminist, the music of Ms. Swift had never quite lined up with the traits I associated with feminism. Not because she dates a ton of guys (judging her for that would be slut-shaming, which, coming from me, would be the pot calling the kettle promiscuous), nor because she seemed to fall head-over-heels in love easily (this doesn’t misalign her with feminism, this is my own personal gripe), but because she constantly seemed to be disassociating herself from, and putting herself above, women that she deemed less deserving of the flippy-haired, boot-wearing country boys of her affection. I am of the belief that wearing short skirts and being a cheerleader does not make one any less of a person – Ms. Swift always seemed to disagree.
But, when the video for her latest song, “Shake it Off,” hit the internet, I watched as feminist friends shared the video on social media. They hailed Swift for the video, praising her for speaking her mind and critiquing our current culture. Being the open-minded person that I am, I decided to give Ms. Swift another try. Perhaps, in the years since I had listened to a Taylor Swift song, she had evolved into a different and more inclusive woman. With that in mind, I decided to watch her new video.
START
My hopes that Swift had evolved past separating herself from other women were dashed immediately – the opening shot shows her literally rising above a group of ballerinas at a barre. I feel like this can’t possibly be heading somewhere positive.
Swift is also wearing a sweatshirt with a cat on it, because of course, she’s a cat person. Ugh.
0:17
The second scene shows Swift holding a large boombox while wearing what I imagine a white grandmother would describe as “hip-hop clothing,” surrounded by young men of varying ethnicities. This does not bode well, either. I am not excited to see where we’re heading next.
0:33
Swift has spent the last few bars of this song listing out complaints that people have against her. While the trained ballerinas behind her perform athletic feats they have spent their whole lives training their bodies for, Swift stands in front of them and does something that could technically be called dancing.
0:52
OH, I GET IT NOW. THE SONG IS ABOUT PEOPLE SAYING THINGS ABOUT HER AND HER IGNORING THEM BECAUSE SHE BELIEVES IN HERSELF. Cool, got it. Good for you, T-Swift. I still don’t like you, but good for you.
But now I’m confused. Is Swift saying she’s somehow better than the people she’s surrounded herself with? Why couldn’t she have just performed this video in that weird barn with all the Christmas lights she films all her other videos in? Why does she feel the need to use people as props to make this statement about self-acceptance? Maybe the answers are yet to come.
1:26
The second verse of the song is devoted to Swift listing off all of her positive traits, which she seems to think aren’t being acknowledged by her “haters” (sidenote: my Seventh Circle of Hell will consist of having to listen to Taylor Swift repeat the word “hate” for all eternity). More incredibly talented people showcase skills they’ve spent their lives honing, while Swift flops around quirkily.
1:29
NOPE. NOPE. Absolutely not. Who allowed this to happen? I want to know the name of the person on Taylor Swift’s PR team who told this girl, in the midst of tons of controversy around women of color being used as props, that this was an okay thing to do, because that person needs to be fired immediately.
Y’all, come on. This is not me being an overly-sensitive minority, right? I can’t be the only one who thinks that this is problematic. “But Logan,” you’re saying to yourself right now, “why were all of the other people considered to be showcasing incredible talents, but these women are degrading themselves? Isn’t Swift just showing a different talent that she doesn’t have?” First of all, don’t interrupt me while I’m writing, it’s rude. Second of all – IT’S BECAUSE WHITE PEOPLE DECIDED A VERY LONG TIME AGO THAT TWERKING WAS A DIRTY, DEGRADING DANCE FORM. Twerking has NEVER been considered to be an art form like the other skills showcased, and I am not inclined to give Taylor fucking Swift the benefit of the doubt here.
I’m gonna watch the rest of this video, so that I can give an honest critique at the end, but I’m officially not happy about it.
2:10
I was wrong. My Seventh Circle of Hell will actually be a continuous loop of this scene. There is nothing I can imagine more torturous than having to watch Taylor Swift stare up at the asses of various twerking dancers in wonderment as she crawls beneath them.
How is it possible that I’m only halfway through this video?
2:31
Just when I thought we’d met all of the groups Taylor would separate herself from, CHEERLEADERS ARRIVE. Let’s all just ignore the fact that Taylor has critiqued cheerleaders specifically in previous songs and watch her jump around with another talented group of athletes.
Also, it was at this exact moment that I noticed Swift had yet to mention a single negative interaction with a guy in this song. I noticed this because she mentioned seeing her ex-boyfriend with his new girlfriend. That was fun while it lasted.
3:12
The shot of Swift literally “shaking it off” with a group of multi-ethnic, normal looking teenagers is so predictable that I’m kicking myself for not having figured out sooner that this is where we would end. This is the exact same feeling I had while watching “The Fifth Element” when it was finally revealed that the fifth element was ~*l*O*v*E*~. HOW IS THIS VIDEO STILL NOT OVER?
END
I tried, you guys. I came into this experience completely open minded. I was ready to accept that Taylor Swift had changed. I wanted to believe. I understand how the main message of this song — accepting yourself in a culture that is constantly telling you you’re not good enough — could be considered feminist. I love that she is telling people, women specifically, not to let criticism get them down. I get why people like it. I really do. But this whole experience has been excruciating.
I list out all of the reasons why I believe that Swift went at this the wrong way. But since I’m sure that I’ll just be dismissed as a “hater,” I won’t bother.
From here on out, when people tell me that I should stop hating Taylor Swift, instead of explaining to them all the reasons why I find her problematic, I’ll follow Ms. Swift’s example and just shake ‘em off.
