Taylor Swift has moved into a political new era, and it’s shaping up to be an eventful one for the singer. After she urged her fans to vote on Sunday evening, and supported Democratic candidates, the voter registration numbers have spiked, Conservatives are reacting, even Trump commented, and the world has sat up to take notice of this young woman asserting her political voice for the first time.
Tonight, at the AMAs, she doubled down on her social media post, using her acceptance speech for Artist Of The Year to stress the importance of voting to her fans:
“I understand how lucky I am to have anyone that cares about me or my music. Every time that you have made me lucky enough to ever get to stand on a stage and have something really sparkly in my hands and say thank you, every single time this happens… it means something different to me. This time it represents encouragement and motivation for me to be better, work harder and make you guys proud as much as I possibly can so thank you for this incredible symbol of encouragement.. this award and every single award given out tonight were voted on by the people. And you know what else is voted on by the people is the midterm elections on Nov. 6. Get out and vote. I love you guys.”
Her logic is sound: If fans can learn to vote for their favorite music videos, why can’t they apply that same skill to politics? One other Easter egg dropped during her Pop/Rock Album Of The Year speech was a hint that she seems albums as chapters in her life, and though this chapter has been great, she’s even more excited for the next one. If 2019 gives us a Democratic House (or even bigger, Senate) and a new Taylor Swift album, then it can’t come quickly enough.