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Taylor Swift was in the news a lot last week.
That’s usually the case when she releases a new album, but this time there’s a twist:
Sales of The life of a dancer were spectacular – breaking records, in fact – but the response to the album was… well, mixed would be the polite way to put it.
It’s not just that Taylor is dealing with some of the first star criticism of her career.
It’s also the fact that even longtime fans are calling out some of the album’s lyrics as being more than a little problematic.
Taylor has been accused of bullying Charli XCX with “Actually Romantic,” in which she allegedly attacks her fellow pop star in a brutal manner.
Even worse, Swift is accused of using racially insensitive imagery in songs like “Opalite” and “Wish List.”
Needless to say, this isn’t the kind of week Taylor had in mind when she announced the release of her new album.
And while she certainly remains the most successful musical artist on the planet (by most metrics, no one else comes close), Taylor’s popularity may have taken a slight but noticeable dip.
Instagram users notice decline in Taylor’s follower count
Across the social media landscape, Taylor’s critics have reveled in the fact that her Instagram follower count has gone from 282 million to 281 million since TLOAS hit stores.
This still makes it the 14th most popular account, just below Kendall Jenner and just above National Geography (Instagram is a weird place), so it’s probably nothing to worry about for Taylor.
But it’s the kind of situation your social media team might be watching closely.
Of course, as many have pointed out, with so many followers, Instagram rounds to the nearest whole number, so Taylor probably didn’t lose a whole million.
News week estimates that her number of followers has decreased by about 200,000 — a big change when you’re talking nine-figure followers… but still a lot of people.
More scandals ahead for Taylor?
All these storms can be weathered, of course – but Tay could be in trouble if there are more scandals on the horizon. And that may be the case.
The latest criticism of the pop icon has to do with the use of AI in her album’s promotional materials:
“Taylor literally used AI in EVERY one of these little TLOAS visuals,” a user X wrote this week.
“This is literally so bad considering she is the biggest artist of the moment. Why would a billionaire who spends YEARS defending his art need this? Horribly disappointing.”
Maybe nothing will come of this latest controversy — or maybe Taylor will be forced to deal with yet another round of backlash.
Whatever the case, the life of a dancer doesn’t seem very glamorous at the moment.
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