Academics will debate Taylor Swift from a feminist perspective, along with her songwriting, artistry and impact on the economy, to mark the pop star’s arrival in Liverpool next month.
Professors, fans and post-grad students are being invited to discuss the pop star in “Taylor Town”, as Liverpool prepares to host the US artist as part of her Eras Tour in June.
The singer will land in Merseyside to perform at Anfield Stadium on 13 and 15 June, prompting the team behind Eurovision 2023 to organise a series of art installations, conferences and Swift-themed workshops to capitalise on her economy-boosting might.
Liverpool ONE, Royal Albert Dock Liverpool and the Metquarter will each feature a Swift-inspired artwork, from a moss-covered grand piano representing her evermore era to giant hearts signifying her Lover era.
Meanwhile, academics at the University of Liverpool will host Tay Day, a conference that aims to “debate and deconstruct” a career spanning more than a decade and 11 studio albums, plus four re-recorded “Taylor’s Version” LPs.
Organised by the university’s Institute of Popular Music, it will host academics from across Europe discussing issues such as Swift’s literary significance, her economic impact, and her feminism.
Dr Sam Murray from the institute said the celebrations, which will take place between 8 and 16 June, were inspired in part by “Bey Day”, a conference he ran with colleagues at Cardiff University in honour of Beyoncé.
“Tay Day” was a step up from that, he explained, as the new conference would unite academics from various backgrounds and disciplines with students, fans and critics at Liverpool’s university campus.
“We’ve recognised with major events, like the Eras Tour, that it does have a really strong economic impact,” he said, citing a colleague, Dr Mathew Flynn, who predicts that Swift’s tour could bring a boost between £18-36m in the three days she will perform in the city.
“This is going to be a huge economic boom, but culturally as well, Liverpool is a music city that is a destination for music, so we wanted to show people that we are taking this subject seriously,” he said.
“She’s had significant cultural and economic impact, so it feels right that we create a space to discuss that and get some understanding about the things that connect her fan community.”
His colleague, Dr Amy Skjerseth, said there would be a “huge variety” of events, from conference talks and academic panels to a free participatory Eras workshop where fans can discuss their favourite Swift era.
“She has a huge archive of very different music, so we wanted to dive into that with our participants,” she said. “We have a lot of student and professor collaborations, post-grad participation, and a special event called Critical Karaoke to cap off the event.”
“Critical Karaoke”, Dr Skerseth explained, involves writing a song-length essay to the music of the author’s choice, in this case one of Swift’s songs, which they will perform to an audience.
Dr Murray said they had received a lot of support from the university, the city and local councils, who saw the event’s potential after Liverpool hosted the Eurovision Song Contest in 2023.
“It feels like a tried and tested formula, so there are ways to engage in a big music event that’s coming to the city,” he said.
“Obviously people might read about it and wonder why we’re investing so much time and energy into this, but it’s because of this economic impact... if you can understand how your local economy can benefit from a big event and replicate that model, you can feed into economic growth in that area.”
He added: “Hopefully other cities will look to this and recognise that they can be doing a bit more.”
Dr Skjerseth pointed out that Taylor Town will also enable fans who didn’t manage to get their hands on tickets to Swift’s live shows to take part in the celebrations through their free event.
“We really wanted to create a space where fans, scholars and critics could come together could have a varied discussion where their voices will be heard, and they can also learn a lot that they may not have known about Taylor, such as not only how she reflects pop music that came long before her, but is also predicting the future in creating a model herself, where we’re feeling the impacts of pop culture on society.
It was reported by Barclays last week that Swift’s Eras Tour could provide a near-£1bn boost to the UK economy. She kicks off her run of shows in Edinburgh on 7 June.
