This is a past event
Objects are not difficult to acquire because they are valuable, but we call those objects valuable that resist our desire to possess them. - George Simmel
Nobel prize winner Elias Canetti says, “the crowd…wants to experience for itself the strongest possible feeling of its own animal force and passion,” and at stadium rock shows, single artists – Bruce Springsteen and the Rolling Stones, U2 and Beyoncé and now Taylor Swift — are able to create what Canetti terms the discharge, that is, the moment when the crowd achieves an “ecstatic state of equality,” and everyone feels equal.
In the years 2023-34, Taylor Swift’s Eras tour did this beyond any previous measure, achieving the top earnings of all tours ever - and causing an earthquake at a stadium in Seattle during the song “Shake It Off.” It was attended by over 2 million people and grossed 100 times that, and the movie of it has been a huge success too, increasing that audience by an enormous factor.
In this talk, I explore what makes Taylor Swift’s concerts both literally and figuratively so valuable in this particular era. I will begin by talking about Benjamin’s concept of aura, move through a consideration of how she fits into the logic of late capitalism, and finally, explain how Taylor Swift is perhaps reviving a lost sense of community in America - and beyond.
Bio:
Gina Arnold is a former rock critic and the author of four books on rock music, including “Route 666: On the Road To Nirvana” and “Liz Phair’s Exile in Guyville”, and she is the editor of the recently issued Oxford Handbook of Punk. She holds a Ph.D. in cultural studies from Stanford and teaches rhetoric, media studies and creative writing at the University of San Francisco.
- Speaker
- Gina Arnold
- Venue
- King's College, KCF22
- Contact
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Please contact Dr Christina Ballico should you wish to join us via Teams.