Top 10 Shocking Things We Learned in Taylor Swift: Miss Americana
Top 10 Things We Learned in Taylor Swift: Miss Americana
This documentary was definitely eye-opening. Welcome to MsMojo, and today we're counting down our picks for the Top 10 Things We Learned in Taylor Swift: Miss Americana.
For this list, we’re looking at the most interesting facts and details that were revealed in this intimate documentary.
#10: She Really Does Care What People Think
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It’s easy to imagine that major celebrities must have thick skins and don’t let it get to them when there’s negativity online or in the press. But one of the major themes in this behind-the-scenes film is the fact that Taylor Swift is strongly affected by what other people think of her. Not only that, but from a young age, her public image was very important to her, and her reputation as a “good girl” was one that she wanted to maintain. As she notes:, “I needed to be thought of as good and do the right thing.”
#9: She Suffered From “Psychological Problems” Because of the Kanye Incident
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This might not come as a huge surprise to anyone who has been following this story since 2009, but that infamous VMAs moment was extremely traumatic to Taylor. She talks about it frankly, revealing that when she heard people in the audience booing when Kanye took the stage, she thought their negative reaction was to her winning, not to him interrupting her. She tied this in to her need for approval, saying that, "The reason why the backlash hurt so much is because that used to be all I had."
#8: She Was Inspired by Her Grammy Snub
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Throughout the film, we actually see Taylor working; writing songs and recording. In the midst of this though, we witness Swift receiving the news from her publicist that her album, “Reputation”, was snubbed at the 2018 Grammys for the major award categories. Though we get to witness her genuine reaction in the moment, she doesn’t spend too much time being upset. Instead, she says, “This is good, this is fine. I need to make a better record.” The result, of course, was “Lover”, although as viewers in 2020 we know that that album didn’t fare well at the Grammys either...
#7: Why She Fell in Love With Joe Alwyn
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While Taylor and Joe shippers will definitely be a bit let down by a serious lack of Joe Alwyn in this documentary, we did still get a few tidbits about their relationship, despite the fact that he barely appears in the movie at all. What we do get is Taylor making clear that their relationship is a private one and explaining that she was attracted to Joe because of his relative distance from the world of mega-celebrityhood. She was drawn to his “wonderful, normal, balanced kind of life” and for that, we are definitely happy for her.
#6: Her Song, “Only the Young” Is Politically Motivated
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The documentary ends with Taylor Swift’s newest song, “Only the Young,” which has a pretty overtly political message. The song was penned after the candidates she supported in the 2018 midterm election both failed to win. She says she wrote it to inspire young people to get involved in politics, encouraging them to persist even if the campaigns they support aren’t successful. She said, "if you're going door to door and they don't win, don't lose hope. We have three to four million people turning 18 in the next two years — resist. If you can shift the power by being bold enough, it won't be like this forever."
#5: It Was Difficult For Her to Get Political
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But delving into politics wasn’t easy for Taylor. For years, while other celebrities made their stances clear, she remained silent on politics, most notably throughout the 2016 election. But in October of 2018, she broke her silence in an Instagram post in which she revealed who she’d be voting for in the state of Tennessee. In “Miss “Americana” she reveals how difficult it was to take this stance, especially since members of her team were advising her against it. But she stuck to her guns, stating, “I need to be on the right side of history.”
#4: Her Assault Case Encouraged Her to Take a Stand
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And one of the factors that influenced Swift’s decision to talk about big social and political issues was her own sexual assault case. After being groped by a DJ at a backstage meet and greet, she was sued, because he was fired after the incident. She countersued and won, but she expressed concern for all of the women who didn’t have her high profile and such a relatively straightforward case to win. She said, "Something is unchangeably different after my sexual assault trial”. In the documentary, in a moment of real emotional vulnerability, she expresses her regret for not getting involved in political activism sooner.
#3: She Experiences Loneliness
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It might be hard to imagine that someone as rich and famous as Taylor Swift could ever be lonely, but that’s a myth she dispels in this film. After she claimed the Grammy for album of the year in 2016, for “1989”, she said she felt as though she had no one to share her success with. She said, “I didn’t have a partner. I didn’t have anyone I could talk to. Shouldn’t I have someone?” Considering her reputation as a serial dater, one might assume that she always has a boy toy by her side, but in reality, her situation can also sometimes be one just like the rest of us experience.
#2: Winning Her Case Didn’t Bring Her Joy
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While initially Taylor wanted to keep her sexual assault quiet, being sued by her agressor forced her to bring the issue into the spotlight. While she only requested $1 in symbolic damages, her civil case victory against David Mueller was still a triumph; but in the documentary she reveals that even though she won, the experience was damaging to her. She called the entire process “so dehumanizing” and expressed solidarity with the other women who go through experiences like she did. Despite her feelings, her participation in this case undoubtedly brought issues like this to the forefront of the cultural dialogue.
#1: She Had an Eating Disorder
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Perhaps the most shocking reveal in “Miss Americana” is Swift’s revelation that she, like so many other women, experienced body dysmorphia as well as disordered eating. She speaks openly about her struggles: "I tend to get triggered by something, whether it's a picture of me where I feel like my tummy looked too big, or someone said that I looked pregnant, and that will trigger me to just starve a little bit.” She states that she didn’t necessarily identify it as an eating disorder, but in retrospect realizes she was starving herself to the point of fainting after her performances. Luckily, she expresses that all that is behind her, and that she’s currently at a healthy weight.
