In queer spaces, music has always played a vital role for subverting societal constructions that queer people struggle to navigate. Pop music has played its own role in this subversion. Stephen Hawkins (2015) sees pop music as a vessel that “negotiates the strains of human endeavor” while it also “reconstructs, reaffirms, and challenges fixed notions of gender” (1-2). Singers and songwriters pull inspiration from their personal lives to appeal to an audience of young people, but they aren’t limited to their own perspectives. “Women can sing with masculine bravado and men can adopt transcendent femininity: poses that were often dangerous to display offstage and outside the recording studio for all genders” (Geffen). This genderplay is a popular mode of discussing social issues for pop singers. Both Beyoncé (in “If I Were a Boy”) and Taylor Swift (in “The Man”) take up masculine identities to discuss gender roles in society. Genderplay can also be utilized for storytelling and confession, and Troye Sivan highlights this in his song “One of Your Girls.”

The queer aesthetic of the confessional easily ties into the confessional aesthetic of pop music. Sykes (2022) wrote that “after autobiography, poetry and pop are the cultural forms most closely associated with confession, an association based in the implied and often cultivated closeness between the lyric ‘I’ and the life of the poet or singer-songwriter” (p. 378). Queer artists have utilized this confessional aesthetic for “coming out” or speaking out against social and political institutions. Hawkins said, “One of the dominant signifiers of the confessional is the ‘closet,’ a crucible of meaning, policed by language and institutional power structures” (63). By utilizing the confessional style for their music, pop artists can speak on their own experiences and desires. They can place themselves in time to examine past experiences or position themselves for a hopeful future. Confessional songwriting is a large part of Taylor Swift’s lyricism and storytelling. Her lyrics outline love and relationships, and personal thoughts and ideas she’s had throughout her life. Despite her more conservative beginnings as an artist, Swift now pushes the boundaries of perspectives of women, love, and sexuality.

Despite Swift’s participation in pop music that aligns with the queer aesthetics of pop music, she is a hotly contested figure in queer spaces. I categorize some of the spaces that have come up with discussions and discourses of Swift and the LGBTQ+ community. I want to begin with an acknowledgement that Swift has not given an explicit title to her sexuality. While Swift is presumed to be heterosexual, there is a fraction of her fans who believe her to be a member of the LGBTQ+ community. This chapter is not to discuss which of these groups are correct, but to examine the interactions between Swift and the queer community through her songwriting, aesthetics, and political and social advocacy. Swift has interacted with the queer community as early as her album Speak Now in her music video of “Mean” to her more explicit Pride anthem “You Need to Calm Down.” It should be noted that both heterosexual and queer artists have participated in many ways in queer communities and pop culture. These artists can be allies, icons, appropriators, members of the community, or some combination of all these identities. I began this chapter ready with my own opinions on where to place Swift, but through researching articles and looking at discussions online between groups of her fans, I realized that Swift’s relationship to the queer community is more complicated than I originally thought.

Taylor Swift as Queer Ally

In Swift’s music video for “Mean,” a song she directs to her own bullies, she includes a scene of a young boy in a lavender sweater sitting on a bench (surrounded by football players) mouthing the lyrics, “Someday, i’ll [sic] be big enough so you cant [sic] hit me.” In the same video, a young girl with short hair is wearing a dress with a blue bow while young girls with pink bows laugh at her and don’t allow her to have lunch with them. Both of these moments have an inherent queer aesthetic in a song about bullying without an explicit statement about bullying queer people.

Swift herself noted a fear of speaking out in her documentary Miss Americana, and many say 2018 is the first time she engaged in politics at all. In April 2019, she made a surprise $113,000 donation to the Tennessee Equality Project to aid in their fight against anti-LGBTQ+ legislation. With her release of “You Need to Calm Down,” Swift made a generous donation to GLAAD in honor of Pride, and her link at the end of the music video led to an “influx of donations in the amount of $13” by her fans” (Aviles, 2019). Swift has made social media posts celebrating Pride month and speaking out against anti-LGBTQ+ organizations, as well as calling out major corporations that support those organizations. In June 2023 during Pride month, Swift again made a statement about supporting LGBTQ+ communities. She encouraged her fans to vote in midterms and research the allyship of politicians they may vote for (Madarang).

In Swift’s music video for “You Need to Calm Down,” she brings together queer artists and influencers to make a fun, colorful, and explicit call against anti-LGBTQ+ protesters while also highlighting the queer community. In her lyrics, she mentions the organization GLAAD by name. In a Vogue interview, Swift tells the story of a moment with friend Todrick Hall, when he asked her, “What would you do if your son was gay?” Swift said she was surprised by the question and realized that she hadn’t been publicly clear on her stance for the LGBTQ+ community. When asked why she was becoming more outspoken, she stated, “I didn’t realize until recently that I could advocate for a community that I’m not a part of. It’s hard to know how to do that without being so fearful of making a mistake that you just freeze” (Aguirre, 2019). Since her political “coming out” as an LGBTQ+ ally, Swift has consistently highlighted queer artists in her work. She has performed and invited queer artists to her tours, including Hayley Kiyoko, Phoebe Bridgers, Girl in Red, MUNA, Beabadoobee, and OWENN. In the music video “Lavender Haze,” the man playing Swift’s love interest is a trans model and actor named Laith Ashley. Swift has spoken up about her concerts being a safe and inclusive space for LGBTQ+ fans.

Swift calls herself an ally to the LGBTQ+ community, but her fans aren’t quite set on how to label her. On a queer community page r/GaylorSwift, a fan asked, “Why does Taylor get to call herself an ally?” Reddit user major_mujer acknowledges the donations and “light advocacy” Swift has done in recent years but brings up the controversy surrounding Swift’s “Lavender Haze” music video (Swift said the title is an old-fashioned way of referring to love and is not a reference to queer love, specifically) as a moment of harm. Across the forum, most commenters expressed wishes that she would speak out more, and they feel that she walks too carefully in order to not ostracize some of her fans. They agree that she’s taken positive steps toward allyship, and yet she has a long way to go (major_mujer, et al.). MTV surveyed fans across Twitter who spoke about Swift as a cultivator of safe spaces for queer fans who felt seen by her confessional style of lyrics about being outsiders; they further spoke about the benefit of her loud activism as something that makes a huge difference for queer people in calling attention to issues and encouraging research (MTV News, 2019).

Swift has acknowledged her failures in allyship, especially her silence during the 2016 presidential election, but she continues to be highly criticized. In a blog post, one writer took issue with Swift for only speaking out about issues that directly impact her, pointing out that her advocacy for the Tennessee Equality Project was because of her relationship to the state (Arcenaux, 2019). Another writer called “You Need to Calm Down” tone deaf for equating online haters with the personal and societal struggles of LGBTQ+ people (Kirkland, 2019). An article in the Harvard Crimson speaks out against artists using political activism for popularity, stating that “Swift places herself at the center of the narrative in which she does not belong—that of a civil rights movement which ought to center on gay rights” (Martinez, 2019). Critics have called out the “You Need to Calm Down” video for painting rural communities as the quintessential antagonists of the LGBTQ+ community in a cartoonish stereotypical manner while ignoring that there are LGBTQ+ people within and from rural areas (Martinez, 2019). Many more articles paint “You Need to Calm Down” as an example of rainbow capitalism for Swift’s own gain.

Taylor Swift as Queer Icon

Swift is not widely considered to be a queer icon. Since her allyship debut, a few fans have tested the title, but for the most part, conversations surrounding her as an icon come with the rumors and speculation surrounding Swift’s sexuality and rumored same-sex relationships with Diana Argon and Karlie Kloss. A queer icon can be defined as a public figure who is regarded as a cultural icon by members of the LGBTQ+ community (“Gay Icon”). This figure does not necessarily have to be a member of the queer community but usually has a devoted queer fanbase and clear allyship to the queer community. In Nylon, Haden Manders (2017) explored this phenomenon, quoting Riese Bernard, who stated, “Historically, queer women have always gravitated towards women who feel like they’re in charge of their shit; they don’t care what men think about them and they’re doing it for themselves.” Manders also quoted Noah Michelson for the reason why he thinks queer men have elevated female artists to queer icons status: “queer male sexuality has long been tied to female sexuality due to both sexualities having been so demonized and policed” (Manders). This brings to mind early Swift music that might not have resonated as much, with lyrics like “Abigail gave everything she had / To a boy who changed his mind” from “Fifteen” and “she’s better known for the things that she does / On the mattress” from “Better Than Revenge.” Swift’s lyrics seem to be critical of female sexuality from a conservative perspective. But since then, she’s retracted the second lyric for its misogynistic undertones and released music that more freely mentions female sexuality, including her songs “Dress,” “Mastermind,” “Slut,” and “But Daddy I Love Him.” There are many more examples from both the Midnights album and The Tortured Poets Department (TTPD) album.

Many queer icons have become such because of their camp: Elton John, Freddie Mercury, Lady Gaga, and David Bowie, to name a few. Hollywood starlets like Judy Garland and Marilyn Monroe got icon status for their tragic careers and lives in the spotlight. Artists like Britney Spears, Janet Jackson, Beyoncé, and Cher have been considered queer icons for their ability to boost the self confidence of their fans. Manders attributes the use of a public platform to elevate and support marginalized people as the true reason for an artist to be awarded the title. Queer icon status is subjective and determined by queer communities who select the artists that resonate with them. So why isn’t Swift among them? She has long since moved past her conservative Christian country girl phase and more naive lyricism into being a worldwide pop sensation. Despite the elaborate music videos and concert performances, allyship, and independent girl-power identity she holds now, it may take time for queer fans to come around.

Taylor Swift as Queer Appropriator

Swift has been outspoken about her love for leaving clues for her fans from her earliest albums; she hides secret messages in her lyric books and drops hints as early as three years in advance in speeches, fashion choices, music video imagery, and cryptic social media promotions (“Taylor Swift’s Easter Eggs”). She encourages her fans to go frame-by-frame to catch her easter eggs that tell the stories of her life and make references to past and future albums. This practice has prompted some fans to speculate how much of her personal life she could be hinting at. Fans know that many of her songs are inspired by the relationships she’s had. From marriage rumors, miscarriages, pregnancy, and even her own sexuality, fans have been trying to piece together every aspect of Swift’s personal life based on these hints.

Swift’s team has shut down rumors of her sexuality, and speculation has led to accusations of her appropriating queerness. Fans who call themselves “Gaylors” have theorized that Swift is secretly bisexual or a lesbian who is intentionally hiding her sexuality from the public. They have curated lists of moments in which they believe Swift is signaling to the queer community about her sexuality. From Swift utilizing what they believe to be Karlie Kloss’s eye in the physical edition of reputation to wearing pride pins and making Rice Krispies the color of the bisexual pride flag on Instagram during her Lover era posting, Gaylors have made a community focused on discussing theories about Swift’s sexuality (Jones, 2022). While in 2024 there are many queer pop artists who openly discuss and display their sexuality, Gaylor fans believe that the music industry might not be a safe place to announce that for all artists. Therefore, they surmise that Swift is offering clues, similar to the historical practice of queer individuals needing to “flag” to one another about their sexuality during times when it was unsafe and illegal to be queer in public.

At the same time, Swift is accused of being a heterosexual woman who appropriates queer imagery and people for her own cultural capital. Queer appropriation is the performance of queerness without any of the background struggles of the community. In the “You Need to Calm Down” music video, Swift has hair colored blue, purple, and pink, the colors of the bisexual pride flag. Her release of this music video coincided with Pride month. One scholar argued that this video “is an example of appropriative allyship to the queer community because it 1) does not meaningfully challenge the system, 2) backgrounds the LGBTQ+ community, and 3) increases Swift’s cultural and financial capital with little risk” (Bryant, 2022, p. 36).

The most recent appropriation accusation came with Swift’s release of “Lavender Haze,” which she explained as a phrase coined from the 1950s and inspired by the show Mad Men in a since-deleted Instagram short. The social meaning of lavender in the 1950s was not a common phrase for falling in love but instead a well-known symbol of McCarthyism and the persecution of queer people who worked for the government. Lavender is tied back as far as Sappho’s violets in her poetry, in flower codes like the carnations Oscar Wilde used to wear (derogatory for men perceived as homosexuals in the 1930s), to the empowerment movements in the 1970s and the Lavender Menace, a group of feminist activists who were deliberately left out of mainstream second wave feminist movements (Hastings, 2020). Queer fans were upset to see symbolism utilized for a heterosexual purpose in Swift’s storytelling; she is also wearing a knit top in the video with 1970s-inspired coloring that resembles the coloring of the current sunset-colored lesbian flag.

“Lavender Haze” contains lyrics that could apply to Swift, such as the scrutiny she receives for being famous; the lyrics could also apply to the perspective of a queer person during the Lavender Scare. While Swift seems to be referencing how sick she is of the idea that she needs to be married and become a wife, the use of “1950s shit” has a wide number of allusions that could be discussed. During the Lavender Scare, unethical interrogation practices were used on a wide variety of people who were perceived as gay. People faced questions about their histories and were told to confess and give up the names of other queer people in order to protect themselves from further consequences. While it’s probably not a history lesson for Swift’s fans, this song did prompt many fans to learn about queer history after the controversy of the release (Gevinski, 2023).

Taylor Swift as Queer Lyricist

In 2023, Business Insider released an article titled “43 Taylor Swift Songs, Interpreted from a Queer Perspective.” That same year, PinkNews (a queer culture news blog) released “10 Taylor Swift Songs which Sound Like They Are about Being LGBTQ+.” Between the articles, forty-nine of Swift’s songs are singled out for having moments that utilize queer aesthetics, engage in genderplay, or resonate with queer experiences. Other moments in her discography are singled out for being reminiscent of queer themes seen throughout literature, such as longing, unrequited love, and the heartbreak of a hidden relationship.

From Swift’s evermore album, “ivy” is speculated to be a song about Emily Dickinson’s love affair with Sue Gilbert. Reaffirming this belief, the song was used in Apple TV’s series Dickinson after a sex scene between the two women in the show (Lewis, 2021). The queer aesthetic of Sapphic longing and forbidden love is present in many of Swift’s lyrics. The song “betty” sparked widespread debates for its seemingly queer undertones after Swift revealed that it was part of a series in her folklore album depicting a love triangle involving a girl named Betty and a boy named James, who lost Betty because he had an affair with a girl named Augustine. Swift’s storytelling uses a genderplay aesthetic and brings up feelings of unrequited or hidden love, a trope common in queer literature. “betty” was written from James’s perspective in Swift’s explanation of the song, but it can be interpreted as queer from a female perspective, since a woman, Swift herself, is singing the lyrics. The “I” narrator of the song brings up rumors being spread and wearing Betty’s clothing at the end of the song. A queer interpretation would set those “rumors” to possibly being about Betty hearing that her friend was queer and then not really wanting to be around her anymore.

“The Great War” and “right where you left me” have imagery of a hair pin, and queer fans believe these lyrics are a nod to the “hair pin drop heard around the world,” a reference to the Stonewall Riots in 1969. Patrons at the Stonewall Inn fought against police brutality toward the queer community and decided not to take the abuses they were facing anymore because of anti-queer laws.

The song “Question…?” from Midnights is framed as a conversation between the narrator and someone else asking questions about both real and imagined moments in a relationship. The song can be framed as the narrator asking themselves these questions. “Did you leave her house in the middle of the night?” This question seems to be asking about a hidden love between the narrator and a girl because of the pronoun “her.” The song also includes the lyrics, “Caught in politics and gender-roles / and you’re not sure and I don’t know,” which could be interpreted as questions around a relationship moving forward because of societal expectations about gender and sexuality.

Conclusion

Swift is a worldwide pop music sensation that grows her fan spaces and popularity with every release. With TTPD, Swifties gained thirty-one songs to pick through for easter eggs and reveals about Swift’s life. Unlike the release of Midnights, there seem to be fewer fan conversations (so far) about Swift’s sexuality during the promotion of TTPD and in the twenty-four hours after release. As June 2024 approaches at this writing, we will experience another Pride month and complex political year; we may see Swift ramping up her voice in the coming months after the promotion for TTPD begins to wane.

Swift’s relationship to queer spaces remains complicated. As a pop artist, she participates in the way many artists do, in confessional spaces as well as engaging in genderplay for storytelling and advocacy. Swift’s advocacy is still under scrutiny, as fans await her next move or public statement. With the release of TTPD, fans have called the album Swift’s horniest album, which means she is continuing to be freer in her conversations about love and sex in a way that she wasn’t during her early career because of appropriate femininity and all-American girl expectations.

Swift’s writing is vulnerable and poetic and resonates with many people, even if they don’t share direct experiences. Swift’s sexuality isn’t necessarily relevant to her interactions in queer spaces, as many heterosexual artists interact with and speak out for LGBTQ+ communities. In both clumsy missteps and her loud celebrations of queer identities, Swift has stayed consistent in her support for the queer community since 2019. Time will only tell if Swift is one day anointed queer ally or queer icon by those communities.

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