CNN anchor Amara Walker on Saturday asked her guest, USA Today‘s Bryan West, whether pop music phenomenon Taylor Swift will “wade into politics” again in 2024 — and specifically on the subject of Donald Trump.
West is the official Taylor Swift Reporter for USA Today and Gannett, and joined Walker on CNN Newsroom the day before New Year’s Eve to discuss what the next year may hold for the massively popular singer, songwriter, and global brand.
In 2023, Swift didn’t just dominate the attention of music listeners, she beat everyone including Trump for the attention of the internet at large, according to an analysis of Google Trends data done by Axios.
She also beat Trump and all the other big name newsmakers for Time’s Person of the Year honor.
Walker and West talked about Swift becoming the subject of study at colleges and universities, including at Harvard, before getting to the topic of politics.
Walker asked West if Swift is going to “wade into politics” or speak out against Trump in “this upcoming presidential election year.”
West did not commit to the idea of Swift speaking up, saying she might “wait to see what happens” next year rather than say anything direct. But he did suggest she can make an impact just by encouraging people to get out and vote.
WALKER: What’s striking is the subjects she’s able to cover. As you said, economy, economics, business, marketing. Then you’re talking about English, poetry, even here in Nashville, one of the Vanderbilt law professors uses her and his copyright and trademark law class. So it’s just stunning her and her impact. She is far bigger than just a celebrity or an entertainer. As you said, she’s a brand. She’s a businesswoman. And we are definitely going to be seeing a lot more of her now, definitely in the classroom.
WEST: What industry has she not touched? I mean, now she’s in academia. What about politics? Because as you know, as we all know, Taylor Swift, you know, waded into politics. I remember her speaking out against Donald Trump. What do you think she will do this upcoming presidential election year or do you think she will wade into politics?
WALKER: So it’s so interesting, as you said in the past and in her Netflix documentary, Miss Americana, she did mention President Trump. I think going into this next year, they might wait to see what happens, but she definitely has an impact.
She always encourages anyone over the age of 18 to go out and vote. When she spoke out against Senator Marsha Blackburn, we saw in Tennessee more than 100,000 registered voters appeared.
So I definitely think she’ll be saying in the next year, like, get out, exercise your vote. I’m very curious and I’m going to be following to see if she does say anything regarding the presidential election.
WEST: I’m just thinking like, can you imagine when she gets married? I mean, it’s going to be maybe even bigger than the royal wedding. Maybe not, I don’t know.
Watch the clip above, via CNN.
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