How Taylor Swift Won Back the Public

TheReputationera was the last time the pop star let someone else define her.

Heres how she rebuilt her image.

Save this article to read it later.

Find this story in your accountsSaved for Latersection.

That was the last time Swift let someone else define her.

During Swifts year away, she began dating up-and-coming actor Joe Alwyn.

We decided together we wanted our relationship to be private, Swift would say.

(And where Alwyn, credited as William Bowery, would occasionally pop up as a co-writer.)

(Alwyn is barely seen.)

Why are you mad when you could be GLAAD?

Unfortunately, both of Swifts interventions came up short.

(Blackburn was elected with nearly 55 percent of the vote the political defeat Swift referenced inMiss Americana.)

(Big Machine Records denied this.)

The rerecording project got underway in 2021, allowing Swift to rewrite the story of her career under self-ownership.

You could leave it behind.

But she doesnt let you … What if we werent ashamed of our eras?

What if we realized they were always with us?

(Little did she know fans would simply assume she was dating girls instead.)

She was not subtle about employing the spotlight as a shield.

The most notable guest at the premiere?

It feels like the breakthrough moment of my career, happening at 33, Swift told the mag.

She serves big sister, not strictly mother.

In herTimeinterview, Swift confirmed her approach had changed since theReputationera.

Me locking myself away in my house for a lot of years Ill never get that time back.

But they had it all wrong.

Which perhaps explains the over-the-top romanticism of the look.

She wasnt dressing for the Grammys, or forMidnights; she was dressing for her new era.

Thank you for subscribing and supporting our journalism.