In June 2023, I had the chance to join a special BTS tour in Korea. I am not an ARMY myself, but my eldest sister is. I was supposed be her “chaperone” because it would have been her first time going on a trip overseas. To our disappointment, her visa application got rejected – while mine was approved. I had to push through despite not having any interest in BTS whatsoever, because the visa processing fee would have gone to waste. But more importantly, the destination is a country I also dream of visiting. Sans the itinerary.

It was a five-day tour to various sites in Seoul significant to the evolution of BTS – from their humble beginnings to global stardom. 2023 was a special year for ARMYs I would eventually come to know. It marked the 10th year of BTS’s debut in the world of music and entertainment. For diehards, all roads led to Seoul that summer. The South Korean capital was in a festive mood as ARMYs from different parts of the world gathered to celebrate their love for BTS. My tour group was especially fortunate to be featured on a local Korean television show while dining at Yoojung Sikdang, the restaurant frequented by BTS in their pre-debut years. As an “outsider” to this subculture, visiting places with hardcore fans and listening to them exchange stories of BTS was an education of sorts.

In the larger context, this overwhelming love for BTS – among other things Korean – has become this East Asian nation’s soft power over the years and has contributed positively to its economy. This popularity has translated into courses on Korean pop culture. Study International (2022) reports that BTS is now an academic subject in the University of California, Berkeley. Interestingly titled New Generation Leaders: BTS, the student-led two-credit course aims to explore the impact of BTS on global youth culture and the globalization of K-Pop. In this period of history heavily influenced by Hallyu or the Korean wave, more universities and colleges the world over are designing courses to understand this phenomenon.

So, the news of global pop icon Taylor Swift becoming a course subject in the University of the Philippines Diliman should not come as a surprise. In a time when pop superstars are treated as modern-day heroes, studying today’s celebrity-driven culture presents many opportunities to explore and understand the contemporary world. As a student of anthropology, it is fitting to ask how someone like Taylor Swift can hold such influence over millions of people across the globe. Even national governments recognize the power of these notable personalities. Who could forget the exclusive deal arranged by the Singapore government to host the Southeast Asian leg of Taylor’s highly anticipated Eras Tour in 2024, which earned the ire of neighboring countries for the potential loss of economic revenue? What about the Twitter plea by then-Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau for Taylor to tour Canada, which was granted despite not being initially planned?

Amid criticisms regarding the course’s perceived lack of depth and social significance, Dr. Cherish Aileen Brillon of the College of Media and Communication explains why she wants to pursue Taylor Swift as a subject of study in a January 2024 article published in the Community section of the UP website. Apart from wanting to engage in something she finds personally meaningful and interesting as a self-professed Swiftie, Professor Brillon believes that Taylor Swift, as a cultural phenomenon, could offer significant insights to enrich our understanding of the intricacies of transnational media ecology as it is mediated by the Internet. The Philippines, a global Internet powerhouse in terms of usage and online engagement, provides a noteworthy context for gauging and reflecting on the influence of media personalities like Taylor Swift. In a celebrity-saturated world, the powerful influence Taylor Swift has just cannot be ignored, Professor Brillon contends.

Moreover, in an interview with Inquirer’s Krixia Subingsubing (2024), Professor Brillon shared that Filo Swifties figured prominently in the campaigns of then-presidential candidate Leni Robredo during the 2022 national elections. It was the first time that a fandom organized and mobilized support for a politico. It is also worth noting that as polling precincts began vote tabulation and partial results were being broadcast, Taylor Swift’s Only the Young trended on social media, most notably on Twitter. Then-presumptive president Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. was referred to as the “big bad man,” while supporters of his election rival then-Vice President Leni Robredo were touted as the “young” (Rappler, 2022). For these reasons, appreciation of Taylor Swift should go beyond her impressive and relatable discography. The culture she inspires, especially among the youth, should not be overlooked. To dismiss it is to ignore a popular truth in today’s world.

PhilSTAR Life’s Gen Z correspondent Angel Martinez sat in one of Professor Brillon’s Taylor Swift classes and learned many things about being a woman, being a celebrity, and, more importantly, being human. From the singer-songwriter’s genre shift from country to pop and her political awakening portrayed in Miss Americana, to the emergence of her global celebrity status and the rise of Swifties forging communities conscious of their social impact, she is convinced that the study of Taylor Swift is, in every way, relevant to the times. In a landscape shaped by a superstar’s persona and the culture that emanates from it, Taylor Swift should, therefore, be of interest to us all –whether you are fan or not. Figures like her merit academic scrutiny, for they are forces to be reckoned with not only socio-culturally, but also politically and economically.

Taylor Swift has become larger than life. Her celebrity has been embraced by millions of fans worldwide. She is a personification of a deity to some. She is said to be this generation’s ultimate pop icon. The power she holds is undeniable. We may think that we know Taylor Swift all too well, but if we seek to truly comprehend the world we live in today, we should give celebrities the discursive engagement their influence commands. A course dedicated to Taylor Swift is not bereft of significance, but is a timely, if not overdue, acknowledgement of a phenomenon that we all need to know well.