Last summer, during Taylor Swiftâs performance of Champagne Problems at The Eras Tour, I found myself emotional as I looked around the stadium at the tens of thousands of fans singing along. In the crowd was the cute tween next to me with her dad, the little Swifties Iâd seen on the way in, and the twenty-somethings I spotted in the cutest Eras Tour outfits. As a 40-something mom of two daughters witnessing such a peak moment of girlhood (and who maybe had one too many tequila sodas) I was brought to tears thinking about all the girls in the stadium. You all have so much life ahead of you to live, I thought, and Iâm so excited for you. I knew the younger Swifties werenât fully grasping the context of the lyrics, but I loved how passionately they were singing along.
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I was reminded of this moment as I started listening to Taylor Swiftâs new album, The Tortured Poets Department (TTPD) for the first time with my 8-year-old daughter. Sheâs a huge Taylor Swift fan and eagerly anticipated the new album. As we listened, I was one of the parents who couldnât help but notice the large quantity of f-bombs and mature topics. I wondered, is Taylor Swift’s new album appropriate for kids?
I like TTPD the more and more I listen to it. Taylor Swift is a storyteller at heart and I love stories (piano tracks like How Did It End and Peter are my favorites so far!) But my 8-year-old wants to be entertained. Her hot take was that itâs a little too slow and sad. She was missing upbeat bops like on her favorite albums Red and Reputation. TTPD wasnât written for the littlest Swifties, and thatâs OK.
So is Taylor Swift’s new album appropriate for kids? Hereâs what other parents are saying about The Tortured Poets Department and why this parent thinks itâs OK for young fans to grow into Taylor Swift’s new album.
Is Taylor Swift’s New Album Appropriate for Kids?
What Parents Are Saying About ‘The Tortured Poets Department’
A post in the public Facebook Group âTaylor Swiftâs Vaultâ with nearly 500,000 members sparked tons of commentary from parents and non-parents: âI feel bad for all the Taylor Tots because most parents are not going to deem this album appropriate,â Crystal Barkley wrote. The comments on her post are (thankfully) mostly positive, so it feels like weâve made some progress from judging female artists like the Britney Spears shaming of the â90s. Here are some of the responses:
âAs a member of her original target audience and with all due respect to the Taylor tots, good. Iâm glad. Itâs for us.â wrote one commenter, Stephanie DeVaughn.
âDoes it make me a bad mom because idgaf? We are JAMMING to this tomorrow…â commented Alex Glossner.
âMy kids are listening to it. Itâs just words. They hear worse from adults.â commented Nicole Sunshine Valdez.
âClean version. Not Tays job to decide for moms,â commented Elyse Kroon.
“Yeah I feel like the song where she says f*ck like a hundred times was a little much and I’m not even a mom or a prude lol. I just know she’s a better writer than that,” added Meghan Mazar.
“Itâs not for them. Signed, the mom of a Taylor tot,” commented Katie Reeder.
Another commenter Allie O’Boyle echoed some of my thoughts, â90âs kids were screaming to Barbie girl…when we were kids and were just fine. Your kids will be fine. They likely wonât even understand the context. They hear swear words more often than you think. Let them enjoy it.â
In the summer of 1995, Alanis Morissetteâs Jagged Little Pill was blasting on repeat through the AIWA speakers in my bedroom. Iâd just turned 14 and had absolutely no idea what was happening in that theater. But I loved her album then and I love the album now. It remains part of the seminal soundtrack of my growing up years, but one I appreciate so much more after understanding more of the lyrics. I wonder whether this will be how The Tortured Poets Department feels for my daughters?
Is There a Clean Version of ‘The Tortured Poets Department’?
Yes! If youâre hoping to avoid curse words, the clean version of The Tortured Poets Department is on Apple Music and Spotify. However, itâs worth noting that removing the swear words doesnât mean youâre free and clear of questions from your little Swiftiesâlike when I had to age-appropriately explain the lyric âunbuttoned my blouseâ in Taylorâs song Is It Over Now on 1989 (Taylorâs Version).
Little Swifties Will Grow Into ‘TTPD’, But Hopefully Not Too Fast
Another commenter on the Facebook post from Helley Chatham spoke to some of the emotion I felt at The Eras Tour, âExplaining [to my kids] that theyâre probably going to feel these emotions in their life and relationships is hard (and hard to accept because obviously I donât want them to experience it!) but knowing theyâll have Taylor to help them process makes me proud tbh.â
With two kids on the cusp of tween life, I know growing up is going to come with some complicated feelingsâitâs not all going to be upbeat bops. But listening to music is one healthy way to process those emotions and learn that youâre not alone in your feelings.
“Growing up is going to come with some complicated feelingsâitâs not all going to be upbeat bops.”
To be honest, Iâm still processing TTPD two weeks after its release, but for now, Iâm not censoring it, per se. Rather, my 8-year-old is choosing other Taylor Swift songs from the expansive catalog of songs she simply likes more. My daughter can âShake it Offâ to her heartâs content and picture having fun with her girlfriends at 22. TTPD will be there for her when sheâs readyâeven if Iâm not. But, just like I was for the girls at The Eras Tour, Iâm so excited for all that life she has yet to live.
