Taylor Swift's team hits out over 'invasive' article speculating about singer's sexuality

8 January 2024, 09:45 | Updated: 8 January 2024, 09:52

An article speculating about the singer’s sexuality has sparked backlash within the fandom.

Swift, 34, has faced countless questions about her private life from the media since her rise to superstardom - but a new article has generated a fresh wave of criticism.

An opinion piece shared in the New York Times last week speculates on the Anti-Hero singer’s sexuality.

The 5,000-word piece combs through references in the singer’s discography and past performances that may be potential “hairpins” indicating her sexuality.

The article reads: “Sometimes, Ms Swift communicates through explicit sartorial choices — hair the colours of the bisexual pride flag, or a recurring motif of rainbow dresses. She frequently depicts herself as trapped in glass closets or, well, in regular closets.”

While the question of whether Swift is a member of the LGBT+ community has been widely discussed among some Swifties in recent years, the lengthy article has elicited a less-than-pleased response from those who work with the singer.

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A source close to the star told CNN: “Because of her massive success, in this moment there is a Taylor-shaped hole in people’s ethics.”

They slammed the article as “invasive” as they suggested the singer's team is unhappy about the piece.

“This article wouldn’t have been allowed to be written about Shawn Mendes or any male artist whose sexuality has been questioned by fans.

“There seems to be no boundary some journalists won’t cross when writing about Taylor, regardless of how invasive, untrue, and inappropriate it is — all under the protective veil of an opinion piece.”

Swift has openly shown her support for the LGBT+ community in recent years, most notably during the release of her 2019 album Lover, but has seemingly quashed notions that she is herself a member of the community.

In a 2019 interview with Vogue, the singer said of her new album: “Rights are being stripped from basically everyone who isn’t a straight white cisgender male. I didn’t realise until recently that I could advocate for a community that I’m not a part of.”

And last year, she appeared to address the continued speculation head-on in the prologue to 1989 Taylor’s Version.

“The jokes about my amount of boyfriends,” Swift wrote. “The trivialization of my songwriting as if it were a predatory act of a boy crazy psychopath. I had to make it stop because it was starting to really hurt.

“I swore off dating and decided to focus only on myself, my music, my growth, and my female friendships.

“If I only hung out with my female friends, people couldn’t sensationalize or sexualize that — right? I would learn later on that people could and people would.”

Swift, whose relationships have historically been the subject of heavy media attention, is currently dating NFL star Travis Kelce.

The star appeared at the Golden Globes on Sunday evening up for an award for her Taylor Swift's The Eras concert movie.