Taylor Swift’s new documentary, “Miss Americana” documenting the 30 year-old singer’s political awakening drops on Netflix today, Friday, January 31.
After being silent for years on all things political, Swift broke her silence in 2018 when she endorsed now Senator Marsha Blackburn’s opponent, Phil Bredesen to represent Tennessee in the United States Senate.
In an October 7, 2018 Instagram post, Swift explained her reasons for endorsing Bredesen including her support for the LGBT community.
Blackburn won the Senate seat by 11 points. In the documentary, Swift talks about her distaste for Blackburn’s conservative views and reacts to Blackburn winning.
She gets to be the first female senator in Tennessee, and she’s Trump in a wig. She represents no female interests. She won by being a female applying to the kind of female males want us to be in a horrendous 1950s world. – Swift
Since her endorsement for Bredesen in 2018, Swift has spoken out on her support for equal rights for the LGBTQ community, including writing a letter to Tennessee’s other Senator, Lamar Alexander, urging his support for the Equality Act which passed the United States House of Representatives in 2019. On her latest album, “Lover,” Swift penned a song combating those who protest against equal rights for the LGBTQ called, “You Need to Calm Down.” The music video for the song featured various LGBTQ icons including Olympic ice skater Adam Rippon, Emmy winner Billy Porter, and RuPaul. Also appearing in the video is one of Swift’s close friends, Todrick Hall, who inspired Swift to be vocal on her support for the LGBT community.
While not hinting to the Netflix documentary, Blackburn released a statement in response on Thursday evening ahead of the premiere of “Miss Americana”:
Taylor is an exceptionally gifted artist and songwriter, and Nashville is fortunate to be the center of her creative universe. While there are policy issues on which we may always disagree, we do agree on the need to throw the entertainment community’s collective influence behind legislation protecting songwriters, musicians, and artists from censorship, copyright theft, and profiteering….I welcome any further opportunities to work with Tennessee’s and the nation’s creative communities to protect intellectual property and ensure appropriate compensation for their creations. On that note, I wish Taylor the best — she’s earned it.
Blackburn also referred in her press statement to the legislation that she and Democrat Rep. Jerry Nadler co-sponsored, the Ask Musicians for Music Act, which asks of radio services to pay “fair market value” on music they use. Swift, herself, has previously voiced her interests in protecting the rights of singers and songwriters.
“Miss Americana” can be streamed starting Friday, January 31 on Netflix and in select theaters across the U.S.
I actually thought this documentary was fantastic. Taylor works so hard to keep parts of her life private, and sometimes the media has it all twisted around. It’s nice to see a vulnerable side to her, instead of the put-together image of quote on quote “perfection” that she fed the media throughout most of her career.
Sometimes opening up and letting people understand your decision process, and even the pain your afraid to share, helps them feel more connected.