What do you do when you’re a mega-famous pop star who just released her eighth album to immediate, massive acclaim? You sell cardigans.
That’s what Taylor Swift is doing, and much like every other move she’s made in her nearly 15-year career in the spotlight, it’s genius.
The cardigan in question, which is literally marketed as “the ‘cardigan,’” is one Swift can be seen wearing for a brief moment in the music video for that garment’s eponymous track, the second on the new album, Folklore.
Over the weekend, the cardigan found its way into the hands of celebs like Kelsea Ballerini, Maren Morris and Cazzie David, and Swift also gifted one to Kobe Bryant’s daughter, Natalia. The instantly iconic sweater can be yours, too, for just $49. As is customary with most album merch drops at the moment, the cardigan comes with a digital copy of Folklore, which will likely boost the album’s already legendary first-week sales.
The cardigan is an appropriate angle for Swift, honing in on the album’s cozy vibes and her fans’ desire to feel close to the artist. “All of her fans want to be Taylor. They want a sense of connection to her,” Gurps Rai, founder of shoppable music video platform DroppTV, told Rolling Stone. By wearing the same thing Swift wore in the music video, said Rai, fans can establish that connection.
It’s all part of a greater shift in celebrity culture toward approachability. While celebs and public figures once built their empires on a larger-than-life image, now the game is all about getting down on the same level with fans. Taylor Swift may be one of the most successful artists of our time who has been a figure of international stardom since she was 16 years old, but at the end of the day, you can both wear the same cardigan. And because everything Swift touches turns to gold, it seems likely that thousands of her fans will be clamoring to do just that.
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