Here's How Much It Would Cost Taylor Swift Fans To Buy All Her ' The Life Of A Showgirl' Merch
Hopefully there are a lot of rich Swifties out there.
Erman Gunes | Shutterstock Taylor Swift released her latest record-breaking album, “The Life of a Showgirl,” on October 3. According to Spotify, it was the most-streamed album in a single day on the platform this year.
This is great news for Swift and fans alike. But for a superstar who is a genius marketer and has never been content with relying on album sales and streaming alone, Swift is turning her focus now to the merchandise she can sell for the release. And, honestly, it’s starting to sound a lot more like the cost of a showgirl.
Swift has offered quite an array of products in conjunction with the release of ‘The Life of a Showgirl.’
An album release is, of course, all about money. Although Swift doesn’t exactly need more at this point (Forbes estimated her net worth to be $1.6 billion, making her the richest female musician in the world), being a singer is first and foremost the profession she chose. But Swift always does more than just drop an album.
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Along with the release of the album, movie theaters also held showings for Swift’s “The Official Release Party of a Showgirl.” The New Zealand Herald’s Bridget Jones described it as “a 90-minute film that included a new music video (played twice), some behind-the-scenes footage and song explainers and lyric tracks.” CNBC called it “the biggest album debut event in cinema history,” reporting that it brought in $34 million in the U.S. and $13 million internationally.
Even with the incredible financial haul it brought in, it still wasn’t the end of the “Showgirl” story. Swift sold multiple variants for physical copies of the album, each featuring different artwork, enticing fans to purchase more than just one. She also released a huge collection of merch, most of which sold out quickly. It included a “Got a Wi$h Li$t Bomber Jacket” priced at $150, as well as “The Life of a Showgirl Violet Blue Hoodie” for $75.
The total cost of all of Swift’s ‘The Life of a Showgirl’ promotional merch is staggering.
Jones urged Swift to “let [her] marketing and merchandise team take a breath or a holiday,” and she might have a point. When you add up the cost of each album variant, the clothing and various other pieces of merch available (“The Life of a Showgirl” hair brush, anyone?), plus a ticket to see the film and a subscription to Disney Plus for Swift’s upcoming docuseries, it all comes out to $1,809.85 in U.S. dollars.
Of course, no one has to buy all of Swift’s merch. You can choose one or two things you really like, or you can buy nothing at all and just check out the album with your existing streaming subscription (if you even want to do that … this is a safe space for all opinions). But there are definitely some hardcore Swifties who will buy as much as they can possibly get their hands on, even if it costs them almost $2,000.
This is just one more example of consumerism running rampant in our society.
Money is a tricky subject right now. The economy is struggling, and no one seems to have enough of it. But, at the same time, it also feels like people are spending money in record numbers, which leaves you to wonder where in the world it came from.
Investopedia reported that 67% of Americans are living paycheck to paycheck. While that’s a solid majority, the other 33% seem awfully loud. They’re the ones making plans like Swift’s possible, and they’re definitely getting noticed for it. And while that 33% seems to be spending wildly, the bigger share isn't exactly applauding Swift's business acumen. In fact, some have even disparaged the pop star for what seems more like a money grab than a creative endeavor.
But love her or hate her, the fact remains, Swift is a master at marketing herself. If people are willing to pay, why shouldn't she make a profit? It’s good to remember, however, that buying everything an artist releases to promote their newest music isn’t feasible for the average person, and you’re not any less of a fan if you don’t.
Mary-Faith Martinez is a writer with a bachelor’s degree in English and Journalism who covers news, psychology, lifestyle, and human interest topics.
