Taylor Swift Takes Aim at Scooter Braun, Leo DiCaprio, and Kanye West in ‘The Man’ Music Video
With her latest music video for fan-favorite Lover track “The Man,” Taylor Swift takes aim at all of the men she has beef with by donning (very convincing) drag and reenacting as many sexist double standards as she could fit in four minutes and 14 seconds. And trust us when we say that there are a lot.
Released on Thursday morning, “The Man” opens on the silhouette of a man with his back to the camera, overlooking an impressive view of New York City from the window of his flashy office. This, of course, is Swift herself playing a rude, manspreading CEO who throws temper tantrums on the tennis court, smokes cigars on public transportation, and cheers on his buddies as they take body shots off of a scantily clad cocktail waitress. As the end credits highlight in all caps, the video is “directed by, written by, owned by, and starring” Taylor Swift.
Since October 2018 when Swift endorsed Democratic candidate Phil Bresden in the Tennessee midterm election, the formerly apolitical singer—who once notoriously refused to identify as a feminist or condemn her white supremacist fans—has significantly reshaped her stance on talking politics. The Pride Month release of the star-studded music video for her pro-LGBTQ anthem, “You Need to Calm Down,” marked the beginning of a new era of woke Taylor Swift. Along with “You Need to Calm Down” and the allegorical Trump-shading song “Miss Americana & the Heartbreak Prince,” “The Man” is one of Lover’s boldest political statements.