I'm a middle-aged Swiftie — here's why I'm proud to be a Taylor Swift fan

Marjorie Brennan shares why she is a fan of Taylor Swift and why the star's music brings her joy

Marjorie Brennan on Taylor Swift

It is a long time since Taylor Swift was just a musician. The discourse around her has reached epic proportions, and people who have little knowledge of, or interest in, her music feel qualified to pronounce on all aspects of her life. Being a fan of Swift increasingly means having to defend her, and thus yourself, against all her perceived transgressions, from her private jet trips to her taste in men.

I’m not exactly what people imagine when they think of a Swiftie. For one thing, I’m a middle-aged mum. Unlike men of a similar age, who very much still inhabit the chin-stroking muso space, middle-aged mums are not highly visible when it comes to performing music, or having an opinion on it. But becoming a parent or getting older doesn’t mean you stop being interested in music. I love it and rely on it as much as I did as a teenager — performing it, listening to it, dancing to it.