After nearly two decades in the industry and 12 original albums, the eras of Taylor Swift have been ever-changing phenomena that continue to captivate fans.
Having sold over 10 million tickets for her Eras Tour and topping the billboard charts consistently, fans of all ages have raved about her musicianship and her influence as an artist. Her new album, "The Life of a Showgirl," has caused many Swifties to change their opinions on the impact of her music, and think she's evolved far from where she started.
"'The Life of a Show Girl' is a lazy, lazy song," Kara Ruskin, a senior studying psychology, said. "It doesn't have very much heart and it doesn't feel mature. It doesn't feel like she's grown up at all and it feels like she's really regressed in a sense."
Many listeners agree that Swift's music has started to sound less authentic, but many still listen to her despite this. An Instagram reel by comedian Yvette Segan said her music is "lobotomy music" and it’s "bad" but is catchy nonetheless.
Edsel Ordonez Martinez, a senior studying computer science, said Swift's music as a whole is relatable.
"The relatability, it's been there, it's stayed there," Ordonez Martinez said. "It's been the soundtrack to everybody's life at one point or another."
Even with controversy surrounding her new album, it's important to note that "Evermore," one of Swift's most popular albums among Swifties, is said to have brought back fans that had been lost with her genre shift.
"She brought a lot of people back in with her writing and her storytelling with 'Folklore' and 'Evermore,'" Ruskin said. "She wasn't trying to make any chart toppers. She was just making art because she had nothing else to do, which is why I think it's so beloved by Swifties and non-Swifties."
With Swift's most recent albums, "The Tortured Poets Department" and "The Life of a Showgirl," and her Eras Tour, some fans feel Swift has become less of an artist and more like a brand.
"Her image changed more, as when she got to 'The Eras Tour' she feels very businesswoman to me now," Abbey Harris, a freshman studying music learning and teaching, said. "She's created a brand, almost like the Taylor Swift brand."
READ MORE: The complex reputation of the Swifties
Margaretha Bentley, a professor who teaches Taylor Swift (Public Policy Version) at ASU, highlighted Swift's public engagement.
"She has reminded her followers a number of times to register to vote. She speaks publicly about doing your own research," Bentley said. "She doesn't tell people how to vote, but she reminds her fans to engage with the political system, which is great."
Bentley said Swift was able to influence the then-new Apple Music program to pay artists during their 3-month trial for its customers. Apple was originally going to leave them without pay until the trials were up, but thanks to Swift, they changed that.
"She very publicly wrote them a letter and said, 'This is wrong,'" Bentley said. "Making that statement influenced their behavior during that three-month trial."
While Swifties and non-Swifties engage in discourse alike, Swift's position in the industry remains untouched as she has continually topped the Billboard charts.
"Her evolution has led to people believing she can't make a better album or she can't do well or she can't do this or she can't do that," Ordonez Martinez said. "Art is subjective, so it just depends on the person's own personal belief. I believe that she is in recent times stagnant, but her music is still quality as ever."
Edited by Kasturi Tale, Senna James and Ellis Preston.
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Jen Hamilton is a freshman studying Journalism and Mass Communications with a minor in Political Science. This is their first semester with The State Press.
