miss americana

By: Anna mcdougall

In 2024, it is almost impossible to go a day without hearing Taylor Swift's name and seeing her great accomplishments in the music industry. Taylor has become one of the biggest and most influential figures in pop culture and has produced the highest-grossing tour ever, reaching over $2 billion in ticket sales, called The Eras Tour. At each show during the Eras Tour, Taylor plays music from each of her "Eras", or in other words, her albums, changing scenery and outfits with each new era. Each show lasts over 3 hours, and she has made her way to six continents and has played 149 shows throughout this tour (Roeloffs, 2024). This tour skyrocketed Taylor's career, but as many know, Taylor had been successful long before this tour existed.

Taylor was born in Reading, Pennsylvania, but her family moved closer to Nashville, Tennessee, when she was 14 years old to focus on her career as a country singer and songwriter. Taylor ended up releasing her first album under Big Machine Records in 2006, and it was a success, including hit songs such as Tim McGraw, Picture to Burn, and Our Song.

As Taylor became an even bigger artist and after a few pop-country albums, she decided to try making a fully pop album called 1989, which was a great success and won Album of the Year at the Grammys. Throughout her career, Taylor has created 11 albums and has rerecorded four albums so far due to her record company selling her rights to the songs over to Scooter Braun. She has written or co-written 274 songs and inspired many fans, especially young girls worldwide, to follow their dreams (Lloyd, 2024). There is so much to learn about Taylor's career as an artist and the challenges she faced along the way, which is why Taylor created her documentary that covers her span as an artist, and lets her show her fans her views and opinions.

The documentary "Miss Americana", directed by Lana Wilson, released in 2020, gives viewers a behind-the-scenes look at Taylor Swift's personal and public life events. It was released at a point in her career when she was about to release an album that expressed some of her political and social views, which she had not sung about before. The documentary allowed her to portray herself in the way that she wanted to, not how the media had portrayed her. It was an outlet for her to show her side to some of her past headlines and stories, which made her seem like someone she is not. Some of her main goals when releasing this documentary were to show her struggles that we may not have seen from the outside, as well as highlight her stance on politics to her fans and anyone else watching.

Many girls can relate to what Taylor covers throughout the documentary, such as discussing the stereotypes and gender inequities she fights in daily life, how the media impacts her self-esteem and mental health, and showing how she is a strong female leader and activist for many political and social issues. After conducting thorough research, I argue that "Miss Americana" allowed Swift to take ownership over her representation and, by doing so, explore and challenge the societal expectations of girlhood. By effect, the documentary and Swift herself continue to be a positive influence for girls across the world.

For those who may not know, girlhood was originally thought of as the "period that encompasses childhood and adolescence before womanhood" (Helgren, 2020, 841), but is now known to be a "flexible category for those who identify with it" (Helgren, 2020, 845). Girlhood can be constructed by institutions such as "family, school, youth organization, and reformatory, as well as by religion, literature, the media, and discourses on child psychology and development" (Helgren, 2020, 841). Anyone of any age can identify as a "girl" and be a part of the girlhood community.

Taking these ideas about girlhood, girlhood studies scholars focus on the "lives, experiences, and cultural practices of people who identify as girls, as well as an examination of how girls are discussed and represented in popular and academic venues" (Pomerantz, 2020, 846). In the documentary, Taylor is a great example of how girls can face discrimination and hate from society and the media, simply by being a successful female outdoing what most men do in the same industry.

Going along the same lines, the term gender is used to describe the "socially constructed roles that men and women inhabit in society" (Kustatscher, 2020, 2). Children get rewarded for modeling what is called "sex-appropriate behavior" and abiding by gender norms, such as girls being praised for being quiet or having restrictions on their views being heard, and boys being encouraged to suppress their emotions and partake in violent behaviors (Kustatscher, 2020, 2,5). In the documentary "Miss Americana", Swift mentions several times how she was always told by label executives that "a nice girl doesn't force their opinions on people; a nice girl doesn't make people uncomfortable with her views" (51:50). She was always told that to stay successful and out of trouble, it is important to not say anything that may upset someone and always smile and say thank you, or she will end up like the Dixie Chicks (51:30). The Dixie Chicks made a quick statement at their concert about how they disagreed with the president at the time, and before they knew it their careers were ruined due to all of the hate they received from society. Society believes that politics is meant for men to speak on and participate in, and discredit women’s beliefs.

When Taylor first announced her political beliefs, society had mixed opinions. Before fans knew her political views, many saw her as "alt-right" due to her " all white, heterosexual, girl-next-door image" (Driessen, 2022). Most fans were relieved to hear this news and felt happy for her to be open with her opinions, one fan saying, "Finally omg. She's been so vague over the past and FINALLY! She says it loud and clear. I'm so proud" (Driessen, 2022). On the contrary, her political outcome left other fans disappointed, one fan stating, "Loved the concert but wish you would have expressed your plans to enter politics prior as I would have saved my $200. […] poor move on your part" (Driessen, 2022). Those responses are solely based on their own political opinions; however, some fans believe that since she had not put out music and was not on tour when she released her political statement, she only made that post for publicity to stay relevant (Driessen, 2022). People who believe this do not believe that a female pop star such as Swift could care about politics or any other issue that's not related to music, which goes to show how the subject of girlhood is devalued by society. Taylor received all different types of criticism because society could not come to terms with the fact that a female can be influential in the music industry and pop culture, while also having an influence on politics as well. The documentary does a great job at showing all aspects of her life, giving insight into her family, friends, performances, political views, songwriting, struggles, and accomplishments. By doing this, she is proving to society that she and other females are capable of having more to them than what is expected.

Swift's political outcome was one of the main topics in the documentary, but she also covers some other struggles that many girls around the world can relate to. One is how she struggled with an eating disorder on tour for her album 1989. In the documentary, Swift discusses how it was difficult for her to see photos of herself in the media because she would "feel like [she] looked like [her] tummy was too big, or… someone said that [she] looked pregnant and that'll just trigger [her] to just starve a little bit – just stop eating." (29:45). Swift also discusses how hard it is for girls to feel good enough due to the double standard society has for girls, stating that "If you're thin enough, then you don't have that ass that everybody wants, but if you have enough weight on you to have an ass, then your stomach isn't flat enough. It's all just f**king impossible"(31:10). By admitting that the way she was treating her body to fit the beauty standard was unhealthy, she can be a positive influence for any girls watching who may also be struggling with an eating disorder. One fan expresses their gratitude for Swift's honesty by writing,

"She has seriously had such an amazing and profound impact on my life … After watching her Miss Americana documentary, I was at a loss for words. I have struggled with a horrible eating disorder for a few years now. To hear that Taylor had the same thoughts and the same problems as me and so many other people was so validating and so inspiring ….I can honestly say that if I didn't have her inspiration, I wouldn't be where I am today, and I wouldn't be in recovery. So thank you, Taylor Swift, for helping m,e and I am sure hundreds of other people fight and get better. You are an inspiration and the best role model anyone could ask for" (Pope and Rose, 2024).

In addition to being vulnerable about her eating disorder, Swift also discusses her struggle with sexual abuse in the documentary. She says that you feel no sense of victory when you win because the process is so dehumanizing. She feels anger that women have to go through the long process of court hearings, but she feels more anger for women who don't have evidence because, "This is with seven witnesses and a photo, what happens when it's your word against his" (57:10). Many of her fans can relate to the way Taylor feels because so many women and girls get assaulted and are not believed because there is not enough sufficient evidence, leading many to not come forward at all. By sharing her experience, she can inspire other girls to share theirs as well.

Throughout the documentary, Swift mentions how thankful she is for all her success, but notes that she has worked very hard for everything she has accomplished. Swift knows that she has the privilege of being a white, attractive, talented artist, but also knows that she has to work extremely hard on top of having those qualities because, as she states, "Everyone is a shiny new toy for like two years. The female artists have reinvented themselves 20 times more than the male artists. They have to, or else you're out of a job. Constantly having to reinvent, constantly finding new facets of yourself that people find to be shiny." (1:10:40). Swift is an example of someone who experiences privilege and oppression at the same time. She has the privilege of her race and financial class, but faces challenges due to the power dynamics of being a female in the music industry.

"Miss Americana" highlights relatability to her fans by showing that she struggles with the same things all girls do. The documentary lets Swift portray herself in a way that is "relatively revealing and compelling" and establishes her brand of "feminism and liberalism" (Hadi and Saputri, 2020). Swift challenges traditional gender norms and expectations around girls by being feminine and "girly" but also not being afraid to stand up for what she believes in, no matter who it may upset, as she states in the documentary, "I wanna love glitter and also stand up for the double standards that exist in our society. I wanna wear pink, and tell you how I feel about politics. I don't think those things have to cancel each other out." (1:18:10). Swift points out that he unfair judgment of how a girl dresses or what she likes makes her any less intelligent or respectable.

Furthermore, this documentary belongs in a digital exhibit on girls' culture because it shows how even one of the world's most popular female celebrities of all time struggles with the same things most other girls do as well. Taylor is a great example of a can-do girl because of her "high ambitions…and commitment to elaborate planning for success in [her] career" (Duvall, 2024, 321). However, without watching the documentary, society tends to try to discredit her hard work to get to where she is today, such as the media saying all of her success comes from singing about guys. This is significant to our deeper understanding of how society views girls' culture, and is why this documentary is important for society to view.

In the making of "Miss Americana", Taylor Swift was able to take back her narrative and show her fans and the rest of society how she is a strong female leader who is not afraid to speak her mind and stand up for what is right. She was able to show girls watching that they do not have to follow set gender norms and can be who they want to be. This documentary was just the start of her using her voice and power to make a difference, and she continues to be a role model for girls around the world.

Works Cited

Driessen, S. (2022). Campaign Problems: How Fans React to Taylor Swift's Controversial Political Awakening. American Behavioral Scientist, 66(8), 1060-1074. https://doi.org/10.1177/00027642211042295

Driessen, S. (2022). Look what you made them do: understanding fans' affective responses to Taylor Swift's political coming-out. Celebrity Studies, 13(1), 93–96. https://doi.org/10.1080/19392397.2021.2023851

Duvall, S. (2024). Celebrity Girls' Studies: Interdisciplinary Scholarship on Fame, Girlhoods, and Identity. (S. Mazzarella, Ed.). Routledge Companion on Girls' Studies, 319–332. Retrieved from New York: Routledge

Hadi, I., & Saputri, N. L. (2020). View of Representation of Social Criticism in the Documentary Film Netflix: Miss Americana. International Journal of Education, Information Technology and Others, 3(3), 567–573. doi:10.5281/zenodo.4314354

Helgren, J. (2020). Girlhood. (D. T. Cook, Ed.). The SAGE Encyclopedia of Children and Childhood Studies, 841–845. doi:10.36019/9780813549460

Lloyd, S. (2024a). How many albums does Taylor Swift have? tTimelineTimelineeases. Retrieved from https://www.newsweek.com/taylor-swift-how-many-albums-songs-tortured-poets-anthology-1892216#:~:text=Prior to The Tortured Poets, sold 114 million units worldwide.

Marlies, K. (2020). Gender. (D. T. Cook, Ed.). The SAGE Encyclopedia of Children and Childhood Studies, 1-6. doi:10.4135/9781529714388.n294

Pomerantz, S. (2020). Girlhood studies. (D. T. Cook, Ed.). *The SAGE Encyclopedia of Children and Childhood Studies,*846-850. doi:10.4135/9781529714388.n306

Pope, L., & Rose, K. (2024). "It's all just f*cking impossible:" The influence of Taylor Swift on fans' body image, disordered eating, and rejection of diet culture. Retrieved from https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0277953624005537

Roeloffs, M. W. (2024). Taylor Swift's Eras Tour grossed $2, double any other tour in history, a report says. Retrieved from https://www.forbes.com/sites/maryroeloffs/2024/12/09/taylor-swifts-eras-tour-grossed-2-billion-double-any-other-tour-in-history-report-says/#

Wilson, L. (2020). Miss Americana. Netflix