#famousgate

You know something I don’t get? The idea that Taylor is this wolf in sheep’s clothing who’s been pretending to be nice this whole time. People want to say “god, everyone knows a Taylor am I right?” and I’m like…we should be so lucky.

Because what’s so wrong with Taylor Swift? She does anything and people immediately believe it’s a calculated PR move to preserve money, image, power. But how exactly? Why does enthusiasm automatically equate insincerity? What has Taylor done that has been so evil? This is the girl who’s kept friends longer than most people–through fame and fortune no less–and yet mass media will try to convince us she doesn’t understand real love or loyalty. She’s a light who’s happy to have fun with what she’s been given, hosting parties and events that everyone seems pretty excited to be a part of. She maintains a positive relationship with her family, a foundation that hasn’t shifted since the beginning. She’s become famous–excessively famous–and she still treasures what got her here.

But, yeah, sure, she’s a fame whore who’s been faking it.

Faking it when she visits kids in hospital, donates quietly to charities, has free meet and greets at every show. She’s such a bad influence the way she works carefully to make people feel loved, whether it’s a woman whose little boy passed away from cancer or a sister wanting to surprise her brother on his wedding day. Obviously she’s a closeted bitch when she gives those speeches on self-worth and feminine power. And how can you respect the way she takes her craft so seriously, actually being lauded by industry professionals?

The talentless hack. Fake ass Taylor. That good ole Regina George.

No.

It’s an annoying narrative. Annoying because she’s worked so hard to leave a positive mark on the world. And whether that’s fake or not, calculated or not, it’s still there…the imprint of someone who’s made so many people feel special and heard and important. From the fans who were invited into her home, in large groups or intimate ones; some publicized widely, some not. Or the ones she meets on the street or at special events she organizes. And the ones who received messages on tumblr and Instagram, especially the ones getting packages and notes and carefully curated gifts. Ask anyone who got any attention during this last era, and EVERY SINGLE PERSON will say she was sincere and personal and life changing. And how can you fake that?

She invited me into her home. She hugged me and saw me as an individual worth knowing and meeting and connecting with. She let me wander through a house filled with memorabilia of a life of love. She handed me a coke. I fixed her dress tag. We talked about pumpkin spice lattes. And we danced in her kitchen to her song that continues to remain a prevalent anthem to the way the world refuses to let her be: shake it off.

She didn’t owe me that. None of us expected that. Or, I guess in a way we did: because that’s who she is. And we knew that.

So, yes, she made a mistake. She mishandled a complicated situation. She had her feelings hurt and she felt victimized. She can be questioned and she can be reprimanded. But she doesn’t need to be vilified. One mistake should not define a person. And no one should be so bloodthirsty for someone fail and fall and break.

Because if you want to believe the worst of a woman just because she’s successful…. If you want to see her enthusiasm, her excitement and her energy–if you want to take all that positivity to turn into negative and to believe the worst in her, to believe that she’s a conniving little bitch who’s façade is finally cracked, then I’ve got to say…I don’t have much hope for humanity.