Taylor Swift’s latest album, The Life of a Showgirl, homes in on women, work, and innovation. The album is a non-stop ride of curiosity, excitement, and pleasure. Not only is the music a joyful listening experience, but it transformed to visual and communal spaces with the official release party in cinemas and a global scavenger hunt for orange doors and clues to the next surprise.
All this buzz has led to Swift breaking records, yet again. Before it was officially released, pre-orders made Swift the first and only female artist to surpass 100 million album units in sales, according to the Recording Industry Association of America. She overwhelmed the box office with a three-day showing of the making of the music video for The Life of a Showgirl, which grossed $33 million in three days.
This idea of a showgirl is nothing new. Traced back to Paris in the 1870s, the showgirl is one of the oldest professions available to women. Evolving from limited sets of earlier occupations like house servants, seamstress, and farm hands, the showgirl is seen to have mystique, excitement, and pizazz. Yet showbiz is grueling and, as Swift points out both visually and in her lyrics, showgirls pay a physical and mental price for their work.
Read more: What Real Life Showgirls Think About Taylor Swift’s The Life of a Showgirl
The showy, flashy, colorful showgirl was an old-school innovation in women’s work. Moving women from ignored spaces spinning wool and cooking meals in high-class homes, or dark, hidden places where their bodies were used (and abused) for the pleasure of others, showgirls were on stage—the center of attention—protected by the curtain.
As Swift has told us, her own story is relatable to that of a showgirl. And, just as the era of the showgirl might be seen as an innovation in women’s economic agency, Swift is, once again, bringing innovation to the entertainment industry in real time. As described in the song “Father Figure,” she has spent almost a decade harnessing her economic power to free herself from the chains of others who, in the past, controlled her artistic talent for their gain.
Swift’s ability to innovate her craft and fan experience is driven by her close relationship to and careful study of her fans, a core characteristic since she was a teenager coming up in the industry. Swift’s original goal was to create music for teenage girls like herself that spoke to their lived experiences, and she wanted to do it in the country music genre. Country music executives at the time were uninterested in catering to teen girls, not believing them a viable source for revenue and income.
But Swift knew better. She quickly understood how to tap into the economic and cultural power of young women in a time when social media reigned. She did it by being authentically herself and creating art that spoke to others like her.
This vibe continues today. Successful women are focused on harnessing untapped energy and talent to make a profit and drive revenue. In my book, Swiftynomics: How Women Mastermind and Redefine Our Economy, I highlight the case of Anu Duggal, founder and CEO of the Female Founders Fund. Duggal began the fund in 2014 to invest in good ideas from women who’d been ignored by a predominately male venture capital culture. Unconscious and conscious gender-based bias created an environment where good ideas went untapped. Duggal made a profit off of their short-sightedness.
This is what Swift did at the beginning of her career. She believed in the power of teenage girls and their voracious desire for songs and lyrics that told their stories to a country beat. And this is what Swift has been doing for the past two decades: creating art for women and others who relate deeply to her lived experiences. Turns out her lived experiences are very universal, with over half of the U.S. adult population identifying as a Taylor Swift fan before the Eras Tour. Because of this overarching relatability and strong fandom, she continues selling content at top speed and over multiple platforms.
People ask me why Taylor Swift is so successful. I wonder how they could not understand it. After all, a showgirl gets what a showgirl wants, and I do not see this showgirl slowing down. As Swift moves into building a family of her own, she will do what all the rest of us have done, which is to continually rebalance the struggle and hustle of everyday life while continuing to be productive members of society in the world outside of our homes. Her creativity, business acumen, and connection to her audience won’t be going anywhere.
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