Erin in New Orleans for the Eras TourMaybe I should’ve known better, but I didn’t expect to be back here in August (ahem) 2025 writing another marketing blog about Taylor Swift. I’m certainly a fan (see image to the right when I traveled to New Orleans for the Eras Tour), but I figured I said most of what I could on the topic after my experience at The Eras Tour. You can read that blog from Spring 2023 here.

Then came this week’s news.

Long Story Short

There is no way to adequately explain to non-Swifties the feelings (and lost sleep) that a Taylor Swift album drop cycle inspires. She does them in various ways, but it’s never a dull experience.

When Swift took a bow Dec. 8, 2024, in Vancouver, she drew the curtain on a nearly two-year tour and spectacle that brought much joy and economic boon to all involved. She also disappeared from the public eye, mostly. Sure, you saw her on TV cuts at Kansas City Chiefs games and occasional outings thanks to paparazzi. She also interrupted her silence to announce she’d finally secured the rights to her first six albums. But the lack of Taylor sightings (and content) seemed to signal she was taking a well-deserved break.

Taylor Swift Eras Tour with Sabrina Carpenter
Taylor Swift and Sabrina Carpenter in New Orleans

Well. She may not have been crisscrossing the globe in 2025, but 35-year-old 14-time Grammy winning billionaires don’t reach that status spending all their time sipping cranberry vodkas at tennis matches.

When it comes to Taylor Swift, the president may declare her “NO LONGER HOT,” but the smallest flames burn hottest, waiting  to combust in a fiery orange-colored burst. Science can be sneaky and sudden. So can art.

For those who are not Swifites, she’s been out of sight, out of mind unless you are one of the few who allow her to live rent free in their minds. For even casual fans, the steady white noise turned into full-fledged buzz on Monday morning, Aug. 11, thanks to an announcement from the uber-popular “New Heights” podcast hosted by the Kelce brothers, curiously followed by a post from the official Swift fan account hinting at a new era.

As they day wore on, “New Heights” revealed Taylor Swift would indeed be the special guest on the upcoming show, then caused a complete frenzy with the revelation that T.S.12 (Taylor Swift’s 12th studio album) was coming.

Pandemonium online. Hourlong waits to preorder the album. Parsing of every single move from the past five years looking for the infamous Swift “Easter eggs” that may have signaled this moment. Ah, “The Life of a Showgirl.”

Taylor Swift in New Orleans in her Reputation EraWhat If I Told You None of It Was Accidental

Jay-Z said “I’m not a businessman. I’m a business, man.”

Taylor Swift may be promoting a new album, but don’t get it twisted. At the core, Taylor Swift IS the product.

As the sun rose Aug. 12, initial buzz gave way to brands trying to get in on the action. So many brands with so many memes. It’s been fun to watch, for better or worse.

If you’re not into Taylor Swift, you may ask, “What’s the point?” Swifties aren’t just consumers; they’re a participatory fandom. And there are a lot of them. Of almost all ages.

Brands of all kinds understandably wanted in on the excitement. The best examples are likely from accounts managed by Swift fans or at least those open-minded to Swift fans. A lot of these examples are national brands.

Should more localized brands care? Yes! That’s not to say all brands are a fit here, but many are. The goal for these brands doesn’t need to be monetization. It should be relevance. And in the end, what’s the harm in making your customers (or potential customers) smile?

The Good


The Blah


The Weird


The Clever


The Niche

 

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And while it’s great for brands to jump in on the fun, it’s also important to remember that Taylor IS THE BRAND. On that same front, how many of you think of your organization as an entity? Or even more so, your CEO’s brand as an entity. While tying your organization to a CEO’s brand can be dangerous (see Astronomer), it also is the nature of today’s environment. Whether you “believe” you are personified by your CEO, you are. Think of any local organization and consider how close their organization’s personality is to their CEO. It’s reality whether you like it or not.

Nonetheless, I’m looking forward to seeing more brands take a shot at incorporating TS12, especially as we anticipate the Wednesday night “New Heights” episode quickly becoming the most streamed podcast of all time. And – because it’s still funny – here’s the Astronomer video.

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