Taylor Swift Once Confessed She Was 'Literally About to Break' Due to This Stressful Reason

Following her relative silence during the 2016 presidential campaign, Taylor Swift finally spoke out on her choice to stay mute about politics. Swift discussed the factors that led her to stay neutral on political issues in an interview she gave to The Guardian in 2019 and how she was 'literally about to break.' While explaining her decision not to publicly endorse former presidential contender Hillary Clinton in 2016, Swift remarked, "You know, if there was a time for me to get involved, the worst part of the timing of what happened in 2016 was I felt completely voiceless. I just felt like, oh God, who would want me? Honestly." If she hadn't felt this way, she said, she would have supported Clinton.

Interestingly, 2016 was the same year Swift had to deal with the famous controversy involving Kanye West's song Famous lyrics which eventually turned into a hate campaign for her. West's Famous which is included in his 2016 album The Life of Pablo, premiered during his Yeezy Show on February 9 the same year. The song features a jab at Swift, with lyrics like "I feel like me and Taylor might still have sex / Why? I made that b-tch famous."

After his then-wife Kim Kardashian uploaded edited versions of their phone calls online, in which Swift seemed to be giving a green light to some of the controversial lyrics, the popstar was subjected to intense criticism from fans and foes alike. Furthermore, Swift was also dealt a blow when, according to Glamour, her mother's cancer came back in the same year. 

Swift went on to explain, "I just felt completely, ugh, just useless. And maybe even like a hindrance." She further highlighted her mental distress and added, "I was just trying to protect my mental health – not read the news very much, go cast my vote, tell people to vote. I just knew what I could handle and I knew what I couldn’t. I was literally about to break."  

Additionally, she cited Dixie Chicks as another justification for her political reticence. The Dixie Chicks were widely hailed for having revolutionized country music in the '90s. But an enraged political remark resulted in a long absence from the limelight and severely curtailed the trio's prosperity in the wake of 9/11. George W. Bush, who was president at the time, called for American military action against Iraq after the horrible events of September 11, 2001. 

As reported by Blast, Natalie Maines, the lead singer of the Dixie Chicks, attempted to console the crowd at the Shephard's Bush Empire theater in 2002 as the band began a global tour. The country singer said that the band was 'ashamed' that Bush was also a Texan, and she vented their humiliation over the contentious conflict. Nevertheless, the country band was swiftly chastised by many when they criticized the former president. There were allegations that Maines and her bandmates were disloyal and anti-American.

Swift highlighted this incident and said, "I come from country music. The number one thing they absolutely drill into you as a country artist, and you can ask any other country artist this, is ‘Don’t be like the Dixie Chicks!’ I watched country music snuff that candle out. The most amazing group we had, just because they talked about politics. And they were getting death threats. They were made such an example that basically every country artist that came after that, every label tells you, ‘Just do not get involved, no matter what.’"

But in 2018, Swift uploaded an Instagram post that ended her political silence. She shared at the time, "In the past I’ve been reluctant to publicly voice my political opinions, but due to several events in my life and in the world in the past two years, I feel very differently about that now. I always have and always will cast my vote based on which candidate will protect and fight for the human rights I believe we all deserve in this country."