Taylor Swift’s cultural impact is undeniable. As a journalist, covering her life and career is more than a job: it’s a whole beat.
“She turns heartbroken emotions into a kind of community,” longtime Swift chronicler Rob Sheffield told Yahoo Entertainment, pointing to the singer’s “Eras Tour,” which, after nearly two years on the road, ends the U.S. leg on 3 November ends. Indianapolis before the final bow on December 8 in Vancouver, BC
“You sing the loneliest song you’ve ever heard in your life and realize you’re singing it with 60,000 other people,” he said. “It’s unlike anything else in pop music.”
Sarah Chapelle, who has been documenting Swift’s fashion evolution since 2011 with her blog Taylor Swift style, described Swift as “one of the most smart and purposeful pop stars of the modern era,” whose artistry extends far beyond music.
“Her music and fashion are like two halves of a locket,” she explained to Yahoo Entertainment. “They work together. Her songs reflect her feelings, and her outfits symbolize all those memories and moments.”
Last year, USA Today’s Bryan West became the outlet’s first full-time Swift reporter, traveling the world to cover the “Eras Tour” and meeting Swifties at every stop. Gradually it became clear to him that Swift’s reach was both vast and deeply personal.
“Every place, stadium or arena I’ve been to, the fans speak the same language,” he told Yahoo Entertainment. “Regardless of continent, her fans almost always have a personal story about how she touched them through a dark time.”
Together, these journalists have witnessed firsthand the evolution of Swift’s music and style into a phenomenon unparalleled in pop music. But what is it actually like to cover the biggest star in the world? Here’s what they had to say.
The Fashion Archivist: Sarah Chapelle
Before Chapelle launched her blog, she was already fascinated by Swift’s everyday style. She saw something uniquely artistic in the way Swift’s everyday look reflected the music she made, allowing fans to not only emulate her but also, in a sense, step inside her art.
“I guess you could call it a niche within a niche of fandom,” Chapelle said. Originally intended as an archive of Swift’s fashion, her blog evolved to provide fans with richer context, noting, for example, the first time Swift wore a brand or brought back an accessory that only dedicated Swifties would recognize.
For Chapelle it became a full-time job. “I would subscribe to fashion magazines,” she said. “I watched every fashion show to familiarize myself so I could identify a brand by the cut of a shirt or the pattern.”
The release of 1989 in October 2014, considered by many to be Swift’s first official pop album, marked a major shift in Swift’s public persona and a turning point for Chapelle’s blog. As Swift expanded the volume and variety of her wardrobe, Chapelle saw her fashion as a curated extension of her identity, with each outfit telling a visual story that complemented the themes in her music.
Chapelle’s book, Taylor Swift Style: Fashion Through the Eras, which dropped on October 8, chronicles this evolution, capturing not only what Swift wore, but the singer’s journey of self-discovery — from her country roots to her bold, daring Reputation era.
Despite Swift’s evolution, Chapelle noted that she remains true to herself. “There is an innate DNA to Taylor’s style,” she explains. “When people read the book, you see that.”
The cultural historian: Rob Sheffield
Sheffield was there in the beginning, captivated in 2007 when he first heard Swift’s single “Our Song.” To him, the song was both her “manifesto and a mission,” hinting at the seismic shifts she would bring to music over the next twenty years.
“There’s a long tradition of young female pop stars singing songs that men have written for them,” Sheffield explained, arguing that Swift “forced the music industry to reckon with the young female fan as the pilot of the entire pop music spaceship.”
He continued, “Taylor Swift writing songs about her own life and presenting them in ‘these are my feelings, but these are your feelings too’ kind of ways has completely transformed pop music.”
Sheffield’s take on Swift is on full display in his upcoming book, Heartache is the anthem, from November 12, in which he explores how she continues to defy expectations around female leadership in music.
An example of her defiance came in 2019, when talent manager Scooter Braun bought Swift’s music catalog and sold it in 2020. In an effort to reclaim her early work, Swift, who switched labels in 2018, released “Taylor’s Version” recordings of Fearless And Red in 2021, followed by Speak now And 1989 in 2023.
Swifties embraced the re-recordings with unwavering loyalty — a testament, Sheffield said, to Swift’s dedication to anchoring her life in her art.
“She wanted her story to be her own,” he said, “and she did that with these albums.”
The tour reporter: Bryan West
When West became the first full-time Taylor Swift reporter for USA Today and the Tennessean, a newspaper within the Gannett chain, he saw it as an opportunity to reshape entertainment reporting. With more than 450 articles written since taking on the role, he’s covered everything from the economic impact of the ‘Eras Tour’ to Swift’s romance with NFL star Travis Kelce and even her support for Vice President Kamala Harris as president.
“I never followed football, and because of her romance with Travis, I now understand football. I get it,” West joked, highlighting how Swift’s influence has led him down unexpected paths.
“For example, I never thought I would be covering the geopolitics of Southeast Asia,” he muses, recalling how Singapore secured exclusivity for Swift’s “Eras Tour” in the region. In response, the Philippines announced plans to build a new stadium for Judge Swift by 2028.
Swift’s endorsement of Harris for president also surprised him. “I had been to a Meghan Trainor concert and was driving back when the news broke,” he recalls. “I had to stop and file [a story] from a gas station parking lot.”
Swift’s ability to make unpredictable moves is something West has come to expect. He describes her influence as “monumental and global” and believes her story is still unfolding.
“Her legacy is still being written,” West said. “There are still eras that we need to dig up. We still have history that I think we’re going to see her make.
