Taylor Swift is taking us back to 1989, and not just with the upcoming "Taylor version" of her 2014 album. Even when taking a break from her never-ending Eras tour, the singer is more ubiquitous than ever—and all she's doing is hanging out with some famous friends.
The tabloid attention began to feel eerily reminiscent of the 1989 era, also known as Swift's "Squad Era"—perhaps this was entirely intentional before 1989 (Taylor's version) .
In the lead-up to her first pop album, Swift pushed back against public scrutiny of her dating life and made it clear that her friends are all she needs. Whenever she's spotted by the paparazzi, she's usually with one of her industry pals, from Gigi Hadid and Karlie Kloss to Lord Dun Lorde Dunham and Lena Dunham. Although many of them had no interaction beyond being mutual friends of Swift, the entire group became known collectively as the Swift Squad.
You could argue that this squad was used against Swift before the backlash in 2016, which ultimately led to Reputation , where, like most aspects of her life, she began keeping her friendships private. But with Swift's version of " 1989" on the way, today's lineup is back in full force on the ninth anniversary of the original album's release. (If it causes another backlash, at least it sets the perfect foundation for credibility TV).
"Bad Blood" Music Video
The singer officially made the band a part of the 1989 era by inviting some of them to an interlude during his 1989 world tour to talk with friends like Kloss and Haim about their friendship.
The squad culminated in July 2015's "Bad Blood" video, in which Swift assembled a literal squad of musician, actor, and model friends and gave them all an action-fighting alternative. An ego against her nemesis (played by BFF) Selena Gomez. The star-studded video won Video of the Year at the 2015 MTV Video Music Awards, and she attended the ceremony with many of the stars featured in the video.
new york squad night out
After announcing the new album at a show in Los Angeles on August 9 (get it, August 9?), Swift was back running around New York like it was 2014, hitting up the city with familiar friends The liveliest restaurants and bars. Such as Hadid, Blake Lively and the Haim sisters. Most notably, just days after one of Swift's famous exes, Joe Jonas, filed for divorce from Turner, she went arm-in-arm with Sophie Turner for dinner, which was a surprise for both of them. It's all a power move.
football hangs on sunday
In perhaps Swift's most squad-like move since 2014, she invited Turner, Lively and more of her closest friends to watch her rumored boyfriend, NFL player Travis Kelce, on Oct. 1 game at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey, marking her most public outing since the "Bad Blood" video was released. With 1989 (the TV series) coming out in a few weeks, the timing couldn't be better for the Ultimate Team vibe.
The only difference between this tabloid era and 2014 is that Swift may actually be in a relationship this time, having attended two of Kelce's football games in recent weeks. However, Kelce has made it clear that their relationship is new and private, and given her absence from the Kansas City Chiefs game on October 8, she seems determined to keep whatever happened between them away from the public eye. — as she refused to let her love life be on public display before it was released in 1989 .
Will 1989 dominate again?
Swift was simply living her life and doing things more casually than others might do with friends, celebrities or otherwise, but the vibe of the 1989 team was undeniable and the timing was impeccable.
That said, Swift doesn't need any help selling "1989." The original album became her second record to win a Grammy Award for Album of the Year, following the album's landmark sales in its first week and beyond. "Taylor's Version" is expected to follow suit, possibly even matching the original album's million-copy debut. History often repeats itself, especially in Swift's day.
