Taylor Swift turns 30 years old in a matter of days. It’s amazing what she’s accomplished before turning 30. It seems like just yesterday we were watching her coordinated girl squad strut down the New York City sidewalks. It feels like just yesterday that the Worldwide Tiddlebanging Tour was happening. It feels like just yesterday that Taylor would pop into the gym in full makeup and come out a short time later, clearly not having worked out a bit. Time flies. So what does Taylor hope her 30s bring her? Less negativity, especially about her body and her style, I guess.
As she approaches her 30th birthday on Dec. 13, Taylor Swift is bidding adieu to negativity.
“There are certain parts of my brain that I don’t visit as often, like stressing out about my body, stressing out about being on trend, stressing out about people thinking I’m cool, stressing out about people thinking really anything about me,” the superstar tells PEOPLE in this week’s cover story, in which she’s honored as one of four People of the Year. “You have to toss out things that don’t serve you. That’s what I think we all try to do when we’re getting older, and you just hope that you’re getting wiser too!”
Going into a new decade of life, the 10-time Grammy winner is feeling “really happy,” she says. “I’ve been told by a lot of people [your 30s] are really fun, and I’m having a really good time approaching them.”
She’s also found inspiration in actress Jameela Jamil, an outspoken advocate of body neutrality.
“I really love that there are advocates out there in the world being very vocal about the fact that aging is not a slow march to irrelevancy, death and decay,” says Swift. “Whenever I feel stress-y about things, I’ll just read some of Jameela Jamil’s quotes about body image and health and normal body weight.”
I’ll let Taylor in on a little secret about aging: every year that passes, you honestly do give less and less of a sh-t about what people think about you. I was neurotic about “what other people think of me” in my teens and early 20s. Years later, I leave the house in no bra and slippers and IDGAF. In Taylor’s case, though, she still cares. Maybe she’s not as neurotic about keeping up appearances and all of that but she still cares. You can tell by her increasingly bizarre insistence that everyone is lying except her, everyone is a bully except her and no one is a victim except her.
Oh, and here’s Taylor’s Christmas single, “Christmas Tree Farm.” The song is awful. The video is cute, I guess.
Thank you @people, @chiumelo, @danwakeford, and 📸 Miller Mobley 😃 https://t.co/Byai8sFql1 pic.twitter.com/jObmAHcuuS
— Taylor Swift (@taylorswift13) December 4, 2019
Cover & photo courtesy of People Magazine, additional pics courtesy of Backgrid.
“Taylor’s Christmas single, “Christmas Tree Farm.” The song is awful” – I’ve told yesterday Taylor is no rival to Mariah and her Christmas song.
I don’t hate her for trying though, the world still needs Christmas songs.
Speak for yourself.
I agree. I think the song is okay. it’s not better than mariah’s song, but I can’t listen to that same old song anymore. I’m fed up. I am still happy with listening to last christmas, though.
She definitely still cares, but I would agree that she seems to care a lot less. her friendships and her style don’t seem to be has performative, and she’s been with Joe for over 3 years now and there’s barely even any paparazzi photos of them so she’s definitely figured out how to keep her life to herself a lot more. I also turned 30 this year and will agree that I care way less now than I ever did.
The song isn’t absolutely awful, but it’s certainly not going to make an impact in terms of Christmas songs, I think. I wish the tone set in the very beginning of the song had been what was throughout the whole song.
It’s true. I hit 30 and it was almost like someone flipped a magic switch and concerns about my appearance really took the back seat. People saying I don’t wear enough color (like I asked, pfft), “eat a sandwich!”, or “don’t you think you could wear a little lipstick or something?” just doesn’t affect me the same way. I’m no longer seeking outside opinions on trivial matters such as what I look like.
I’ve found I’d rather love myself and look a certain way for my own pleasure, rather than for others. It’s set me free in so many ways.
She seems to have gotten new cheek implants and new veneers- looking very chipmunky!
Is that why she looks so different? I couldn’t figure it out.
As they say “ Eagle eyed fans could notice a changed appearance…”. I guess that’s what’s different, plus she doesn’t look as squinty as she did when she first came on the scene. She has been getting subtle work for years- a quick comparison of before and after pictures would confirm that. 🙂
There’s a meme somewhere about how the older you get, the uglier you are willing to go out in public. I am that meme.
Amen.
I’m 38, and I make decisions now based on what makes me feel beautiful and happy. I care about my appearance, but I will absolutely go out in public no makeup, sweats, etc. (with DDD boobs, no bra is uncomfortable cuz they just bounce everywhere, but I stopped wearing “pretty” bras and just live in Vanishing Back from Soma.) It’s so liberating to stop letting the male gaze and my own insecurities dictate which dresses I can wear because I have “big” legs. Like hell ya they’re big. Better to power me through my days!
There was a time she used to do this “perfect girl” cosplay, and she had the body of a model. In recent years she has gained weight, so I tend to believe her.
Funny how when she stopped hanging out with mainly models, she gained some weight and has a healthier look.
I am convinced someone got through to her about the importance of body positivity/mental health & the toxic obsession with thinness and that is when she stopped being best friends with models.
She also used to have natural A cup & went up to C cup. A bigger chest can make a girl/woman look heavier than they actually are. Personally I think this fuller figure version of Swift is sexier!
She got subtle breast implants done. Good work, but she was still thin when she moved to a fuller chest. The weight gain came after. She looks fine with it, so I do agree that she cares less about fitting in with a certain crowd.
Agree on the breast implants. I also think she got a butt implant, which was pre-weight gain.
But I’m glad she stresses less about her body now. I hope it’s not just solely for her man (the “he likes a full figured woman” thing), but also for herself.
I find her so much sexier with more weight too. if I were a guy, I’d most certainly fancy her. she is pretty and her body is amazing and I think her personality is okay. I don’t think she’s a bad gal.
When she cares, I think it’s more as a businesswoman rather than as a person like the rest of us. As a businessperson, you do have to care how your brand performs, otherwise what’s the point of running your business?
She has allowed herself to gain weight which in her line of work is unusual for someone who was as slim as her and who still has to wear skimpy clothes, so I do think she probably does care less. Again, when she does show glimpses of caring, I think that’s more as her business persona and as a form of engagement with her fans. There are multiple versions of these famous people and the really private side I don’t think we see…
She’s not going to stay looking 16 and gangly forever because that’s not her body type and I do hope she is comfortable with that. It’s got to be so hard always being judged on your appearance by the world.
WORD.
You know who doesn’t care? Kate Moss. She does her thing and moves on with it. WERK.
Not the same here at all.
the decades of binge drinking, coke & cigs have a lot to do with why Kate Moss looks like old leather these days.
That video is adorable. Maybe this is weird but I think it’s so cute and endearing that she’s close to her mom. I was barely listening to the song because I was distracted by the home movies. I am totally here for 90s throwbacks and moms playing with their babies at Christmas time. No complaints.
I don’t know. It’s great, but she would probably have shed some of the immaturity that causes her so many problems if she were getting her main feedback from peers rather than her mother. Part of maturity is seeing yourself as the world sees you, not how your parents saw you as a child. (And this works both ways, gaining humility if your parents spoiled you, and a sense of self-worth if they dragged you down.)
I’d say maturity is seeing yourself as you see yourself and not through the lens of other people, including your parents.
Ever since I moved to a major city (Toronto) I have never felt so judged or badly about my body from other women, mostly my “friends”. Since I never lived in a big city before, is this a big city thing? I am seriously thinking of moving back to the US because I have found it has really hurt my self esteem and made me feel like I am back in high school. I have lived here 7 years.
Yes this is a big city thing, absolutely.
Source: Manhattan.
I am thinking of moving back to NC despite all the reasons why I shouldn’t: healthcare, Trump, etc. My friends from university/graduate school never ever made me feel this way.
Yes, it’s absolutely a big city thing. Big city people are more “on the pulse” or whatever and there’s more of a “see and be seen” attitude IMO. I lived in a big city for 13 years (22-35 years old) and moved to the suburbs of said city last year. People still care here as it’s a pretty big affluent suburb, but not nearlyyyy as much as the big city. It’s a nice change of pace…
She definitely cares, but I think finding a loving partner helps too. She seems very happy with Joe.
The song is cute…but her lack of vocal talent makes it cringy.
I think she definitely still cares, because her back-up singers her plus-size. Therefore, they make her look so much smaller on stage when she sings and performs. I honestly think she looks good and healthier with her current weight.
correction: back-up singers “are”
eye roll at this headline. she cares very much what people think of her, and she has built her entire career and self image on it.
I don’t think Taylor is as blameless as she sometimes makes herself seem, and that situations often have a lot more nuance, etc. — but honestly, I’m kind of surprised at the level of disdain that is held for her in these articles. Yes, she can be obnoxious and navel-gazey at times, but the way she’s written about and how everything she says is automatically dismissed, eyerolled at, or treated like some sort of joke is surprising. I swear, the Kardashians get written about with more compassion sometimes here.
I think the crux of the frustration against Taylor is that 1) society is primed to always resort to sympathizing with her by default because she’s the image of a fragile white girl who needs protection and 2) she has, in the past, utilized that to garner sympathy for herself when it’s been entirely undeserved, even if she’s had to lie about certain situations to do it. She’s the mean girl in high school, the self-absorbed PTA mom who throws a tantrum about store bought cookies etc. That’s the problem. If the Kardashians symbolize a particular type of evil in present day society, she symbolizes another type of it, even if she’s been making more amends recently and trying to account for it a little better in the interviews she’s given so far.
+1…. the judgment here against her always seems over the top (and no she’s not blameless… I wish she would get someone good in her circle that she would listen to and handle PR situations better) and other people who do really problematic things get passes.
I used to assume she was just naturally really thin. But now it’s obvious she tried quite hard to achieve that. So was she anorexic before?
I think she cares, maybe a lot less but every woman does to some extent so cut her some slack. I think she looks fantastic right now with some meat on her bones and glowing with happiness. Giving less effs really suits her. I really hope Joe is the one and she settles down and fins her peace (Lord help us if she doesn’t) I’m getting closer to 50 now and all my effs are gone and I couldn’t be more delighted.
Ps. The song sucks major butt. I am extremely biased against all Christmas music though being from the devil and sounding like harpies wailing and cats being murdered.
She’s just changed what she cares about no? Obviously she still cares a lot, but her priorities are different now. The type of person she wants to project to the world has changed as she’s hitting 30. So her previous concerns abt body image and weight and whatever else have just been replaced by other things.
Didn’t she before up on a Christmas tree farm? I think that’s why she sang this exact song. I’m pretty she she did.