By Gemma Sherlock & Tom Walker, BBC News, Merseyside
BBCA university has welcomed Taylor Swift fans for an academic analysis of her career ahead of the singer’s arrival in Liverpool.
The 34-year-old pop star will perform at Anfield Stadium over three nights, starting on Thursday, as part of the UK leg of her The Eras tour.
Liverpool has been gearing up for the award-winning singer’s arrival, including the University of Liverpool who held a ‘Tay Day’.
Superfan Jade Molloy said it was a “special thing” to have had the chance to attend talks on her favourite musician.
Dr Sam Murray and Dr Amy Skjerseth, from the university’s Institute of Popular Music, organised Tay Day – a “symposium for fans, students and academics to engage with the cultural phenomenon that is Taylor Swift”.
“We have had talks ranging from a Taylor Swift millipede named after her to undergraduate Taylor Swift societies and how she has helped a bunch of first years ease their transition into university,” Ms Skjerseth said.
Ms Molloy said: “Having the chance to come back to my old university and have some talks on my favourite musician is a really special thing.”
Ross Michurin, who is originally from Russia but now works in Liverpool, said he became a Swiftie in 2015 after listening to ‘Shake It Off’.
“I absolutely fell in love with that song, and since then I have been following Taylor Swift and I can say I grew up with her,” he said.
“She is a fantastic storyteller and her lyrics really touched upon situations that I experienced in my life and I can feel that she feels me, and I can resonate with her songs.”
‘Keen to criticise’
Fans, students and academics came together at the Yoko Ono Lennon Centre.
There were talks on her vinyl records and her place within feminism and the LGBTQ+ community.
Veronica Skrimsjö explored Taylor Swift’s stance on money in the music industry.
She said the singer had faced some disapproval from critics who accused her of “commercialising her releases” after various editions of Midnight were put out.
Dr Skrimsjö said she felt people were “keen to criticise” a woman who was “trying to do something different” and it could be blamed on “misogyny”.
“To study one person is not just to focus on her legacy and her craft but to focus on music as a whole,” she added.
The day culminated in a session of “Critical Karaoke”, where researchers performed one-song essays to their chosen Taylor Swift track.
