“Never Heard Silence Quite This Loud”
Silence and Agency in Taylor Swift’s Career
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 22430571 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Fruzsina Papp (corresponding author) |
| Year | 2026 |
| Volume | 21 |
| Issue | 2 |
| Publication date | 2026-01-01 |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | European Journal of American Studies (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 1991-9336 • E-ISSN: 1991-9336 |
| Publisher | OpenEdition (PUBLISHER) |
| DOI | 10.4000/16krv |
| OpenAlex | W7168372777 |
| Language | EN |
| References cited | 3 |
Taylor Swift quickly gained fame as a teenager in 2006 for having the ability to express her own lived experience in a way that not only produces catchy songs but also simultaneously captures the experience of millions. When she won a VMA in 2009 for doing exactly what made her famous, however, Kanye West grabbed her microphone and took the stage from her in a rather misogynist attempt to humiliate her, while also silencing Swift in front of millions. While battling the media about her representation and public perception, West humiliated and silenced Swift once again in what came to be known as the “Snake-gate” or the “Taylor Swift is over party” on Twitter (now X). When, along with her record label, her master recordings were sold to Scooter Braun, it not only meant her discography and her income, but her voice, her handwriting, and lived experience were taken from her. As this silencing of Swift has become periodic and recurring, Swift has turned this into some of the most profitable projects in the music industry: rerecording her music and creating the Eras Tour. Silencing, and the question of vocality, is not a new phenomenon; feminist criticism and gender studies have been addressing the issue of silencing for decades, and it is also a central question of the fourth wave of feminism. Following Catherine MacKinnon’s arguments on silencing and Rosi Braidotti’s thoughts on neoliberal feminism, this essay explores how silencing and vocality are addressed in Taylor Swift’s lyrics, videoclips, films and business ventures.
Criticism · Publicity · Silence · Swift · Gender, Feminism, and Media · Music History and Culture · Sound Studies and Aurality
| Highly cited | No |
|---|