I should probably start by telling you that Taylor Swift got me into Brown University, so I’m not exactly an unbiased narrator.
When I say she got me in, it’s not an overstatement. Yes, my transcript was fine. My SATs, solid. But I am fully convinced that in a sea of essays about volunteer trips to South America and founding nonprofits and what the Common App refers to as the “background” and “challenge” essays, the fact that I wrote about the biggest pop star in the world and declared to perfect strangers that I “chant” “Shake It Off with Taylor Swift” made me stand out.
I have been a Swiftie since I was 11 years old, when I had two tickets to the 1989 tour in my cart but was too ashamed to proceed to checkout. The first song I sang nightly into my mirror was “You Belong with Me.” From there, it was a rabbit hole of “Fearless,” “Love Story,” “Hey Stephen,” and a daily routine of switching my music from refrains like Marry me Juliet to Lil Wayne’s She lick me like a lollipop every time I left the house.
Read Full Article »