A few weeks ago, Taylor Swift could do no wrong.
She was packing out stadiums – and cinemas – with her sell-out tour and being credited with single-handedly boosting the fortunes of the US economy.
But the world of celebritydom can be fickle, and Ms Swift has now found herself on the wrong side of her devoted fans, the notoriously woke Gen-Z Swifties who watch her every move.
They have become increasingly angry about her excessive use of a private jet to visit her new boyfriend, American football star Travis Kelce.
The Swifties feel her sky-high emissions are wrecking the environment, and have even set up an Instagram page to track her trips.
Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce have dinner at Waverly Inn in New York City on October 15, 2023
:Taylor Swift arriving Kansas City, KC on November 27 2023
Taylor Swift, Brittany Mahomes, and Ashley Avignone cheer after a Kansas City Chiefs touchdown during the second quarter against the New England Patriots at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts, on December 17, 2023
Ms Swift, 34, began dating Kelce, also 34, ion September. Since the start of their relationship she has made a number of flights back and forth on her private plane to see him play for the Kansas City Chiefs, or to go on dates with him.
At the end of November, Ms Swift travelled from her Eras Tour show in Brazil to Kansas, where she was seen at Kelce’s home, before jetting to London less than two days later for Beyoncé’s Renaissance film premiere. She then flew back to America within two days to watch Kelce play the Green Bay Packers in Wisconsin.
And shortly before, following a romantic weekend with Kelce in Argentina, Ms Swift travelled to New York for less than a week before jetting to Brazil – each flight taking over 11 hours.
The Instagram account set up by her annoyed fans claims Ms Swift has burned 138 tons of CO2 in three months. The singer would need to plant 2,282 trees and grow these for ten years to offset the environmental damage caused by the jetting about.
Taylor Swift performs onstage during night two of Taylor Swift | The Eras Tour at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium on July 08, 2023 in Kansas City, Missouri
Another said: ‘I take public transport or I’ll walk, I recycle… but when one person produces 138 tons of carbon emissions, it makes you think.’
‘As much as I’m a Swiftie, I’m not defending her on this one,’ added another.
In 2022, Ms Swift’s carbon footprint was reported to be 1,928 times the global average and the highest of any celebrity – but previously Swifties have always defended her. One wrote in response to online criticism: ‘So you want pilots not to have a job?’
Ms Swift is currently on a break from her Eras Tour after spending the festive season in Kansas City, but will travel to Japan in February before heading to Australia.
In response to previous calculations of her flight emissions, a spokesman for Ms Swift has said: ‘Taylor’s jet is loaned out regularly to others. To attribute most or all of these trips to her is incorrect.’
