Even people who aren’t fans know Taylor Swift because of her hit songs like “Anti Hero”, at least one of her exes, and her massive reputation as a globally famous songwriter and singer. Everyone has heard Swift’s voice either on YouTube, the radio, or on CDs. Her name is being chanted across full stadiums, and being said on radio shows, red carpets, awards shows, and more. She has received award after award like 14 Grammys, three Album of the Year Hits, 23 MTV Video Music Awards, and the list goes on.

Just recently, on Dec. 5, 2023, Swift won the TIME Magazine’s Person of the Year award. But what exactly is a “TIME Magazine Person of the Year Award?” According to TIME Magazine, “Ever since Charles Lindbergh was proclaimed Man of the Year for 1927 in the Jan. 2, 1928, issue, TIME magazine has annually selected what is now known as the Person of the Year — the man, woman, group or concept that had the most influence on the world during the previous 12 months.” People like inventors, activists, and even former presidents have won this honor including Barack Obama, Pope John Paul II, and David Ho.

While this is her first solo win, Swift is not new to the prestigious award, as she has been part of the 2017 winners, “The Silence Breakers.” They are a group of activists, actors, directors, etc. who won because they brought awareness to sexual harassment and assault around the world, telling anyone who has gone through sexual harassment or assault to go and tell their story to make people aware. Along with this, they also are credited with starting and boosting the #MeToo movement.

TIME Magazine claims Swift won this year’s award due to her “accomplishments as an artist—culturally, critically, and commercially. As a pop star, [Swift] sits in rarefied company, alongside Elvis Presley, Michael Jackson, and Madonna; as a songwriter, she has been compared to Bob Dylan, Paul McCartney, and Joni Mitchell. As a businesswoman, [Swift] has built an empire worth, by some estimates, over $1 billion. And as a celebrity—who by dint of being a woman is scrutinized for everything from whom she dates to what she wears—she has long commanded constant attention and knows how to use it.”

Many fans of Swift, commonly referred to as Swifties, are content that she has won the prestigious honor. Junior Karley Gehrig is one of the many who think that Swift should have won. “I think [Swift] deserved the award because she worked hard enough and showed that she could do this with a certain amount of work and strength,” Gehrig said, “I think that [fans] have a love for her music and for the way [Swift]  personally grew from having somebody make her music, to her making her own music, just appreciating her work and how hard she worked to get there.

As Swifties and other fans cheered on, many thought Swift shouldn’t have won the award. Freshman Hanna Shirr has mixed opinions on Swift and her win. “I think of Swift as a good person, but I don’t think that her music is great,” Shirr said, “It’s not like I think she doesn’t deserve [the award], but I think that there are people who deserve it more.”

Shirr has also found that Swift’s music is truly not that different from other artists in the industry.“If you compare her music to other artists, [Swift] is not super unique, so I don’t think she’s really special for that. I can see why a lot of people think she’s an icon though, and she’s a very influential person, but I don’t get why a few people chose her and then it all started crowding on,” Shirr said. “I have a lot of opinions on Swifties. I think that some of them are nice, and some are aggressive. If you say you don’t like Taylor Swift in front of a swiftie, they will be angry, [when] it’s not that serious, everyone has their own opinions.”

Sophomore Rithvik Gabbireddy shares similar opinions to Shirr, while also claiming that Swift is “ruining,” or in some way, influencing football and the Superbowl. “She’s good, but she’s very, very overplayed, which made me hate her,” Gabbireddy said. “People are now wanting the Chiefs to win just because of Taylor Swift and it’s kind of annoying.”

Gabebireddy believes that the main reason Swift won was because of her fanbase. “Her fanbase supports her the most, however, maybe [Swift] wasn’t as qualified for the award as most people have thought,” Gabbireddy said. “She’s good for getting the award, but there’s a lot of other people who deserve the award like Elon Musk, who might not be a good person, but thanks to his achievements [like] his company SpaceX, I feel like he should have won.”