'Taylor has no cultural impact'

I find this sentiment bizarre, because it seems impossible to me that a woman with such a large following and successful career in pop would somehow not leave a mark. I hate the word culture it's meaningless, but culturally Taylor has left a mark.

Let's start with how we view celebrity, How Taylor positioned herself as a celebrity was drastically different to who came before her, for example Madonna. Madonna positioned herself as a God, access to her was exclusive and her status was unrelatable. This wasn't all Madonna's doing, of course, and it did very much reflect the time. Taylor is the complete opposite. I think this is shown most clearly in how intentionally close she has been with her fans, really taking the exclusivity out of it. Taylor is relatable and reachable just like us.

Now for me to say that Taylor contributed to that shift in how we view celebrity feels too little, but for me to say Taylor drove that shift feels too much, so let's just sit somewhere in the middle. Taylor rose to fame during the age of social media, where constant access to eachothers lives became a norm. This lead to the influencer, which is very much the celebrity at its most relatable. This fits very well with Taylor as a celebrity.

Music wise, so many pop girls and musicians have followed in Taylor's steps. Cultivating strong bonds with their fans and portraying themselves as relatable in a way that is a symptom of the digital age but also I think a reflection of Taylor's influence.

Now before I end this I want to quickly zoom out to the title statement. From what I wrote here, Taylor fits in well with the changing times. She has done no real pushback, which I think can create the illusion that Taylor has done little for culture. Bringing back Madonna, she was provocative, she pushed the boundaries and limits of the time which Taylor has not shown an interest in doing. I think this also has changed how we view celebrity, or expect our celebrities to be. Controversy is not loved, I would argue we expect our celebrity to be more conservative.

Taylor's impact may be less dazzling and bright, but it's still impact.