Musk Targets Swift: "Person of the Year? Popularity Will Decline"

Musk's Continuous Outbursts on X

Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla and owner of X (formerly Twitter), provoked popular pop star Taylor Swift.

On the 8th (local time), Swift expressed her gratitude on her X account for being named Time magazine's Person of the Year. Time explained the reason for selecting her as Person of the Year, stating, "Swift's popularity has been rising for over a decade, but this year she unleashed energy akin to nuclear fusion in both artistic and commercial aspects."

Photo by AFP Yonhap News

In response, Musk said, "There is a risk of popularity declining after being named Person of the Year," adding, "This comes from my own experience." Musk was named Time's Person of the Year in 2021.

Photo by AFP Yonhap News

Since acquiring Twitter, the predecessor of X, in October last year, Musk has been spewing nearly outrageous remarks through X. In particular, last month he posted a message on X that appeared to endorse anti-Semitic conspiracy theories, drawing severe criticism. Companies have stopped advertising on X, and the White House issued a stern warning.

Swift, targeted by Musk's attacks, is rewriting the history of pop success.

The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reported on the 8th, citing concert magazine Pollstar, that Swift's Eras Tour has generated $1.04 billion (approximately 1.37 trillion won) in revenue.

The contribution of this tour to the U.S. GDP is a staggering $5.7 billion, equivalent to about 7 trillion won. The tour has energized restaurants and hotels in the cities where performances are held, giving rise to the new term "Swiftonomics."

This figure surpasses the highest-grossing concert by a pop star to date, Elton John's farewell tour, the "Farewell Yellow Brick Road Tour."

Additionally, she was named Person of the Year. This is the first time in nearly 100 years of Time magazine's Person of the Year history that an entertainer has been selected alone.

American media are also closely watching what influence Swift, who does not hide her progressive political views, will have in next year's U.S. presidential election.