Young Women's Musical Interests and the Economy
Over the past few months, the music world has been buzzing with the excitement of two of the industry’s biggest performers embarking on huge tours, Taylor Swift and Beyoncé. These two performers are probably some of the biggest names in music for the 21st century and the reaction to their tours has solidified that status. What is even more notable about the two of them touring, is just how far and extreme fans, specifically young women, are willing to go to experience these shows, despite the current state of the economy.
Not to state the obvious, but the current state of the economy has been brutal for a majority of people with the rising costs of living, stagnant wages, and increasing inflation. However, despite these current struggles, fans of Taylor Swift and Beyoncé have been showing out for these tours. Without even getting into the outrageous ticket prices and the greedy ways of Ticketmaster, the fans going the extra mile to enjoy these shows only starts at purchasing the tickets. For most people attending these shows, they have decided to elevate the experience as much as possible through fashion and community within the fandoms. For Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour, fans have been going all out regarding their outfits for the concerts, whether it be sticking to a theme of one of Taylor’s eras, or even just wearing something fun. Fans have also been sharing friendship bracelets with other concert goers hinting at various themes surrounding Taylor’s music, with many fans showing up with arms full of bracelets to share with fellow concert goers. Fans attending the Beyoncé shows have been showing out in their best Renaissance attire by dressing in anything resembling the disco themes of the album, which have been such a joy to see across social media.
Not only have the fans been going the extra mile in terms of clothing, they have also been willing to travel wherever they need to in order to have a chance to experience these tours. Of course for those traveling to another city to attend a show, they will likely be getting a hotel and going out to dinner, or possibly even making a whole weekend out of it. This in and of itself brings tourism to these cities and helps stimulate the local economy. So what started as just buying a concert ticket now as turned into purchasing outfits, jewelry, supplies for friendship bracelets, lodging, dining, and possibly airfare, all to see their favorite artist, making the concert experience for these big names costing quite the pretty penny. This phenomenon of young women going the extra mile to show their love and enjoyment for the music they like isn’t anything new, and is actually something that has been happening for generations.
When Elvis Presley stepped into the spotlight and began performing, young women and girls went absolutely wild for him. With the combination of his good looks, great voice, and suggestive dance moves, young women’s obsession with Elvis propelled him into stardom. It is even depicted in the Elvis movie that came out last summer how women would become so overwhelmed with their love for Elvis that they would start to scream, faint, and throw their undergarments on the stage.
Another prime example of young women’s musical interested absolutley taking over is Beatlemania. I mean the fact that the obsession with The Beatles became so extreme that the media named the reaction “Beatlemania” says enough. Women were crying and fainting at the sight of The Beatles and this reaction caused such a mass hysteria that the media became even more focused on the band, making them one of the most beloved bands of all time. Young women’s efforts to show what huge fans they were lead to the fascination with the band becoming similar to actual worship, leading John Lennon to stir a bit of controversy by stating that the band had “become more popular than Jesus”.
This extreme obsession and fascination with bands and musicians by young women continued on through the decades, making popular bands even more in demand. Some other examples of bands or artists being highly adored by young women include The Rolling Stones, Mötley Crüe, Nirvana, NSYNC, The Spice Girls, Justin Bieber, and One Direction. With each of these bands or artists, female fans were willing to pay anything, go the extra mile, and do whatever they could to show their love and respect for these artists. What is also interesting with most of these female music obsessions is how they are often made fun of or mocked for being such fan girls.
Although young women have always been mocked for their musical interests, history has shown that once bands or artists receive a majority female fan base, they are propelled into stardom and become a world wide phenomenon. With the Elvis Presley craze and Beatlemania, these bands were able to create mobs of fans and sell anything they put their name on, which benefitted touring agents, venues, and the tourism economies for the towns they would visit. The fact that this continues to happen with new bands each decade is nothing surprising, but what is surprising is how young women’s musical interests continue to be mocked despite all the economic stimulation they create. There is not one demographic of fans that are more loyal and intense that a band or artists can have then young women and that still rings true today.
With the Taylor Swift Eras Tour, Beyoncé's Renaissance Tour, Morgan Wallen’s current tour, and Harry Styles’ Love on Tour young women have been using any extra income they have, or even that they don’t have, to support these artists and show their love for them and their music. And while they continue to be mocked and made fun of, so many people are making money off of their dedication to their favorite artists. Seriously, please tell me if there is another band or artist on tour that isn’t being mainly supported by the demographic of young women. Even if there is a band on tour that men are the larger fan demographic, they still aren’t doing as much as the young women when it comes to attending a show.
So while young women have been the subject of many jokes and media skepticism over their love and obsession for their favorite artists, they continue to be the driving force behind the spending involved in the music industry, as well as many other industries (I don’t even have time to dig into that). Although times are tough out there for many people, fans of these big names are still buying tickets, clothes, hotel rooms, plane tickets, accessories, and even spending locally just to show their love. Everyone makes money off of the young woman fan and the economy should be very grateful for that.
