On one side, you have the “Political Swifties,” who are praising their queen for using her platform to promote change and social justice. These fans see the backlash as a necessary evil in the fight for progress. “Taylor is being brave,” said one Twitter user, armed with a profile picture of Swift and a bio full of #GirlPower hashtags. “This is what being a role model looks like.”
But on the other side, there’s the “Keep the Politics Out of My Pop” faction. These fans are furious that their beloved singer has strayed from the realm of break-up anthems and love ballads into the arena of endorsements and political discourse. “She’s a singer, not a politician,” raged one user. “I came for the music, not the lectures.”
It’s as if Taylor Swift has turned into the Yoko Ono of her own fandom, inadvertently splitting her followers into warring camps, and causing endless online skirmishes between those who want to sing along to You Belong With Me and those who want to march to The Man.
The real-world consequences of this fan divide are starting to hit Swift where it hurts—her bank account. With only 2,000 tickets sold so far for a tour that was expected to sell out instantly, promoters are reportedly scrambling to figure out how to salvage the situation.
“It’s unheard of,” said one industry insider. “This is Taylor Swift we’re talking about—she could sell out a concert in a cornfield, and people would show up with flowers and glitter. But this endorsement has clearly rubbed a lot of fans the wrong way. Now we’re looking at half-empty stadiums, and that’s not a good look for anyone.”
