Taylor Swift is engaged. She’s been getting her fans ready for this moment for 20 years
- Written by Sarah Scales, PhD Candidate, School of Social Sciences, Media, Film and Education, Swinburne University of Technology
Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce have announced their engagement, posting on Instagram images of the proposal with the caption “Your English teacher and your gym teacher are getting married”.
“America’s sweethearts”, the pair have been dating for two years. Now fans are saying this will be America’s version of the royal wedding.
Swift and Kelce’s post has already received over 24 million likes from the pair’s fans.
Swift’s love life has long been in the spotlight – both in her songs and in the news. So fans were perfectly primed for their outpouring of support and love.
But what is it about Swift – and her fans – that encourages such emotional reactions?
Understanding parasocial relationships
To understand the deep affection Swift’s fans have for her, it’s important to understand parasocial relationships.
A parasocial relationship is a one-sided relationship we develop with someone, typically a media figure, where there is no reciprocity. Through the media and artistic output, we develop knowledge and feelings, and begin to encounter the relationship the same way as we would a “real world” or interpersonal relationship – but there is no mutual development.
Every time we see them in the news or on social media, or listen to their songs, that’s a parasocial interaction we have with them. Then those interactions build until we feel as though we know them like a friend, or perhaps they fill a role as a mentor, or a crush.
Parasocial relationships mimic our real world relationships.
Swift’s fans are very passionate and she expertly harnesses this fanbase.
Swift builds on these relationships
Swift’s first album was released in 2006, and over the ensuing 20 years, she has had many iterations, or eras. This has given fans many entry points into her life, and the opportunity to grow up with her and experience their different life stages with her and her music.
Many other musicians may have long periods of stepping away from the spotlight between albums, so their fans aren’t receiving necessary parasocial interactions to maintain their relationship and closeness.
But Swift has released 11 studio albums and four re-rerecorded albums since 2006, with her 12th to be released this October. She is also a common figure in the news because of her high-status relationships and friendships. This has allowed fans to constantly build and flourish their relationship and closeness with her.
Her marketing savvy, the easter eggs she drops leaving fans always speculating, and the interest and buzz she generates, creates a sense of community and belonging among fans which is global, universal and easily accessible online.
She has a strong perceived authenticity, where fans feel as though they truly know her, and they feel as though she cares about them individually. For non-fans, this may not make sense: she is an untouchable billionaire who has broken records for her crowd sizes. But this is one of the ways parasociality works: you feel as though the celebrity is your close friend and that they care for you.
Swift generates and feeds into these emotions. In hosting listening parties at her house or picking fans from the crowd to join her onstage, she creates the sense she is a genuine person – and keeps the illusion that, maybe one day, that could be you.
Crafting the celebrity image
Swift’s romantic relationships and close personal friendships are a key part of her celebrity image. Throughout her whole career these relationships have been reported on, drawing attention and interest.
Her fans see her relationships playing out in the news through various paparazzi images and articles. Then they hear about these relationships in her songs, as a major theme of her music is love and heartbreak. Because her music is so centred around love and heartbreak, it makes sense love has become a core part of her celebrity image.
Her relationship with Kelce is probably one of the most reported-on relationships she has had. She was with the actor Joe Alwyn for six years, but that was a much more private relationship.
For the past two years, Swift and Kelce have been in the limelight, and fans have felt a joy in seeing her in this relationship and getting to witness it.
Your English teacher is getting married
Swift clearly has an understanding of her fans and their parasocial relationships with her.
Fans have long called Swift their “English teacher” because her songwriting is so revered. Her fans see a lot of poetry in her music, and feel they have learnt a lot through this poetry.
In calling themselves “your English teacher and your gym teacher”, Swift and Kelce are placing themselves in the roles their fans have cast them as.
The pair know their fans have a closeness with the couple – and even though that isn’t reciprocated by Swift and Kelce, the pair are placing themselves in the position of role models.
Language like this closes the gap between celebrities and ordinary people. If you imagine your teachers getting married – someone you saw every day and you personally knew – that would be exciting. To word it in that way brings them down to a more personable level, drawing them, once again, closer to their fans.
Authors: Sarah Scales, PhD Candidate, School of Social Sciences, Media, Film and Education, Swinburne University of Technology
