logo
episode-header-image
Apr 2024
38m 1s

Harvard’s Taylor Swift Course -What You’...

iHeartPodcasts
About this episode

Harvard is teaching a course on…Taylor Swift? Yes! Harvard University, the one in Cambridge, Massachusetts has a new course about T-Swizzle whose Eras Tour has earned over 1 billion dollars so far. And whose latest album just broke multiple streaming records within hours of its release. Really, no Really!

Our initial reaction was to poo-poo the Harvard course because we happen to be congenital born poo-poo-ers. But when we investigated the course syllabus, we found it fascinating, and an easy A it’s not.

Jason and Peter have enlisted the talents of Professor Stephanie Burt -who teaches the Taylor Swift course at Harvard - to not only discuss her class, but to also take a closer look at the woman, her music, the music industry she has upended and her rabid fan base, the Swifties.

Professor Stephanie Burt is the Donald and Catherine Loker Professor of English at Harvard University and has published various collections of poetry and a large amount of literary criticism and research. The New York Times has called Professor Burt "one of the most influential poetry critics of her generation".

You’ll also hear how Jason and Peter gave Taylor a job, way back in the day. Really, no Really!

IN THIS EPISODE:

  • How Prof. Burt sold Harvard’s Administration on doing a Taylor Swift course.
  • Is Taylor Swift just about skewering her x-boyfriends?
  • Do you have a Hermeneutic Friendship with Taylor? And what does that even mean?
  • Does Taylor use “lects”? And what does that even mean?
  • How Swift’s social media consciously builds and deepens community with her fans.
  • Taylor Swift’s success: amazing business acumen or smart consultants?
  • The songs a Swift novice should listen to first.
  • GoogleHEIM: Quiz: Who sung it - Taylor Swift or the Sex Pistols?

***

FOLLOW PROFESSOR BURT:
X: @accommodatingly

BlueSky Social: @notquitehydepark.bsky.social

Podcast: teamupmoves.com

***

FOLLOW REALLY NO REALLY:

www.reallynoreally.com

Instagram

YouTube

TikTok

Facebook

Threads

X

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Up next
Apr 15
Mike Campbell: The Man Behind Tom Petty
Rock & Roll Hall of Famer Tom Petty died in 2017, but his music continues to live on thanks to hits like "Refugee", "Here Comes My Girl", and "Runnin' Down a Dream." But recently Jason and Peter were stunned to learn that Petty didn’t write those songs alone. Really, no Really! M ... Show More
57m 3s
Apr 8
Paul Reiser’s Return to Stand-Up
Who isn’t a Paul Reiser mega fan? The dramas like Stranger Things! The comedies like “Mad About You”! How about the action/adventures with The Boys! And who could forget him in Aliens! ALIENS! And now after a 32-year hiatus he’s back on the road doing stand-up comedy again. Reall ... Show More
54m 31s
Apr 1
From Stand-Up to Seinfeld: Carol Leifer on Comedy, Writing, & Embarrassing Speeches
She’s written several classic Seinfeld episodes including “Lip Reader” and “Rye Bread.” She’s also written more Oscar telecasts than any other woman… but neither of those facts are this week’s “Really”. No… she’s on to promote her new book with a really long title. Really, no Rea ... Show More
57m 39s
Recommended Episodes
Apr 8
What All Leaders Can Learn from Taylor Swift
Whether you're a fan of Taylor Swift or not, no one can deny her success as both a music star and businesswoman. Her career has been a masterclass in everything from customer connection to innovation, decision-making to digital adaption, offering lessons for people in any industr ... Show More
25m 13s
Mar 2024
Taylor Swift Derangement Syndrome (w/ B.D. McClay)
Why are Republicans and the right losing their minds over Taylor Swift, the gifted songwriter and globe-bestriding pop star? Why do they think her NFL tight end and Super Bowl-winning boyfriend is secretly gay—precisely because he's dating Taylor Swift? Why is this slice of Ameri ... Show More
1h 18m
May 30
Taylor Swift Now Owns Her Masters
Nora and Nathan talk about the news that Taylor Swift now owns the masters of her first six albums, from her debut to ‘Reputation.’ They talk about the long road that led up to this deal, including the recordings of the ‘Taylor’s Version’ albums (1:00); what this now means for th ... Show More
58m 19s
Mar 2025
Scientifically Ranking Taylor Swift's Friends & Frenemies
GET TICKETS TO EOAS LIVE: https://www.evolutionofasnake.com In this episode of Evolution of a Snake, THE Taylor Swift Podcast, we dive into the complex web of Taylor Swift’s friendships—ranking them methodically. From Abigail to the Girl Squad, we evaluate these connections based ... Show More
1h 53m
Oct 2022
Taylor Swift Fighting Against The Machine
The Rise of Taylor Swift. (0:00) Taylor Swift’s Lifts the FIFA World Cup (0:37) Taylor Swift’s Surge in Popularity (1:15) Taylor Swift’s Early Life (2:12) Taylor Swift’s Rise in Country Music (4:20) Taylor Swift’s Music Award Wins (5:40) Taylor Swift and Jake Gyllenhall Relations ... Show More
15m 58s
Aug 2024
Scientifically Ranking Taylor Swift's Ex-Boyfriends
In this episode of Evolution of a Snake, THE Taylor Swift Podcast, we do our best to rank the muses in Taylor Swift's catalog objectively. Though there is a subjective 'hotness' category, we strive to view these purses for their contributions to the discography and lore, and also ... Show More
1h 28m
Sep 2024
Taylor Swift Decoded with Pop Music Journalist Brittany Spanos
Brittany Spanos is a senior writer for Rolling Stone Magazine who has taught a course at NYU called Topics in Recorded Music: Taylor Swift, which analyzes "the culture and politics of teen girlhood in pop music, fandom, media studies, whiteness and power as it relates to her imag ... Show More
1h 4m
Oct 2022
Taylor Swift Lutter Contre le Système
La montée en puissance de Taylor Swift. (0:00) Taylor Swift soulève la Coupe du monde de football. (0:37) La popularité croissante de Taylor Swift. (1:15) La première vie de Taylor Swift (2:12) L'ascension de Taylor Swift dans la musique urbaine (4:20) Taylor Swift remporte des r ... Show More
16m 19s
Jan 2025
Snake Storytimes: Heartbreak Is The National Anthem by Rob Sheffield
GET TICKETS TO EOAS LIVE: https://www.evolutionofasnake.com This week, we’re taking on Rob Sheffield’s Heartbreak is the National Anthem—a book that claims to capture Taylor Swift’s impact on pop music but left us wondering… who was this even for? We dive into Sheffield’s overly ... Show More
2h 27m
Jun 2024
Tracing the origin story of Taylor Swift
From Pennsylvania to New Jersey to Tennessee, The Times’ Megan Agnew spent three weeks on the Taylor Swift trail, discovering the origins of the supersonic star. How does someone go from teenage guitarist to pop phenomenon? Was her fame just luck and talent, or was there a master ... Show More
29m 21s