Taylor Swift Hits Highs on the Charts and in Auctions – WorthPoint

While music tastes differ across the entertainment landscape, few will debate that Taylor Swift is today’s most iconic performer.

Since the release of her second album, each recording from Swift has reached number one on the Billboard Top 200. She has more albums, reaching 1 million copies sold in one week than any other female performer, and recently surpassed Beyonce for the most MTV Video Music Awards.

The Swift Effect is also felt economically for any city she hits on a tour. In its analysis after naming Swift its Person of the Year in 2023, Time reported that hotels hosting the Eras Tour saw a $208 million bump and an overall $5.7 billion uptick in the American economy thanks to the show.

So yeah, she’s kind of a big deal, and it’s no wonder that T-Swift is rapidly climbing in popularity among memorabilia collectors.

A Limited Selection

Building a Taylor Swift collection can be a challenge, however. Unlike many artists of her stature, Taylor Swift’s memorabilia is harder to come by. While others are part of the collectible landscape in the form of figurines, trading cards, or certified and distributed autographs, Swift has stayed away from these areas.

Unfortunately, this has led to many unlicensed collectibles popping up in the marketplace. Crafty sellers, for example, have replicated the Funko Pop model and sold them on platforms like Etsy. Let’s be clear, though—as reported by USA Today, there is no licensed Funko Taylor Swift.

Without these pieces, hobbyists must take a much different approach to building an authentic Taylor Swift collection, and this is where Taylor Swift has ultimately succeeded for her fans. Amid an era of digital media, Swift releases singles and albums through Apple Music, but physical albums also hit the market.

Not surprisingly, records are part of this array. Vinyl, after all, has dramatically expanded in interest from music lovers and investors alike, and it doesn’t have to be vintage to be collectible. Swift’s label has done a remarkable job tapping into the collector market, with some records, such as Fearless, having serial-numbered versions available. Then there are the regional releases, such as a Chinese edition of some vinyl, while some have retail variance, such as a Target-exclusive version.

Swift and company made it even harder to get every version of her record, if this isn’t enough to make your head spin. As documented by Billboard, color variations exist for several of her vinyl records, which were more challenging to attain because they were only available for as little as one week. That’s right—just seven days to get your mitts on the various shade versions.

Now, the original sticker price for these artifacts may not sound shocking—$30 USD a pop (music) is fairly reasonable—but that’s retail. Smart Swiftie investors undoubtedly lined up early to get their copies. Such was seemingly the case with a dual-prong rarity release of Reputation on vinyl exclusive to FYE with orange translucent coloring. This vinyl, the most valuable non-signed piece of Swiftiana, sold for a jaw-dropping $13,600 in 2023.

One collector saw firsthand the meteoric rise in Swift vinyl popularity. Reddit user Vdreux88, who created an ongoing checklist of Swift records, lamented the value increase during the COVID-19 pandemic. “$100+ for the black vinyl edition of Red is CRAZY, literally you used to be able to buy this so easily for like $25,” they said.

Above and beyond vinyl, however, are those close to Taylor’s heart. A search through her online store yields CDs and cassettes, which shoppers can also find in retail outlets—far from what you would even dream of seeing with most artists today.

However, before you start assembling a shopping list, you need to do some research. A hitch in the scheme is that different versions of the limited releases have different features. Take, for example, the 1989 Crystal Skies Blue Edition. Per the label, this two-LP collection includes five previously unreleased songs and “unique” photos. If you intend to collect and play the albums as well and are a completist, this will factor into your buying plan.

The Taylor-Travis Effect

The interest in Taylor Swift has come with a dovetail effect for her beau, Travis Kelce.

Kelce is a popular figure among collectors in his own right, thanks to a stellar NFL football career with the Kansas City Chiefs. His cards, autographs, and collectibles would stand reasonably well in today’s sports memorabilia market, no doubt, thanks to his incredible play, but the Taylor effect and the mass media that follows the couple at every turn undeniably buoy his swag.

Here, however, comes another word of caution for the Swiftie who is crossing into sports memorabilia for the first time: licensed products of Kelce and Swift simply do not exist. You’ll find some tabloid magazines, but that’s it. Some unsavory types will attempt to pass off items like trading cards featuring the pair or a supposedly authentic Taylor Swift Kansas City Chiefs jersey as legit, but simply put, these are not real.

The Future

The interesting thing about Taylor Swift is that, in the eyes of many, the songstress hasn’t peaked yet.

While she’s 17 years into her musical career and has countless accolades to her credit, Swift isn’t showing any signs of slowing down. Continual rumors of her taking time off from the road and recording studio for a pending marriage (let alone engagement) to Kelce don’t seem to be genuinely in the cards.

Even if Taylor does take a well-deserved break, don’t expect it to last long. Swift is a workhorse, dedicated to her fans in a deeply connected way that most artists only dream of—she will not be on the sidelines for long.

And this will only further the excitement around Taylor Swift memorabilia.

Jon Waldman is a Winnipeg-based writer. He has written for Beckett, Go GTS, Canadian Sports Collector, and several other hobby outlets over his two decades in the hobby. His experience also includes two books on sports cards and memorabilia. Connect with Jon on Twitter at @jonwaldman.

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