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Ahead of the release of her eleventh studio album Tortured Poets Department, discussions about Taylor Swift‘s Ancestry connection with poet Emily Dickinson are making the rounds. The genealogy company Ancestry linked the two famous figures in an article published on Today, claiming they were sixth cousins, three times removed.
Taylor Swift and Poet Emily Dickinson Ancestry Link, Explored
According to the website Ancestry.com, Taylor Swift and Emily Dickinson are descendants of a 17th-century English immigrant. However, while the English immigrant, who settled in Windsor, Connecticut is Taylor’s 9th great-grandfather, he was a 6th great-grandfather of Emily’s making them sixth cousins. The genealogy company also traced the Cruel Summer crooner’s family tree, and how her lineage finally spurred the Swift family line. A note on the website read,
“Taylor Swift’s ancestors remained in Connecticut for six generations until her part of the family eventually settled in northwestern Pennsylvania, where they married into the Swift family line.”
The title, Tortured Poets Department, Taylor Swift’s eleventh studio album has stirred lots of debate, from grammatical correctness to the inspiration behind it. Swiftie’s thirst for uncovering the inspiration isn’t farfetched considering the singer’s history of tapping inspiration from real-life experiences or events.
Since it so happens Taylor Swift is indeed sixth cousins with a legendary poet whose reclusive life falls within the Tortured Poets radar, there couldn’t be a more convenient time for this relationship to pop up.
The 6th Cousin Connection May Be a Marketing Ploy
Several netizens believe Ancestry’s timely decision to bring up the link between Taylor Swift and Emily Dickinson at this point was no mere coincidence. Many have taken to social media to tag it as a gross marketing ploy, especially as the same connection was made in 2020, following the release of Evermore. One Reddit user commented,
“This is old news so it’s pretty intriguing that People, Tree’s go-to, is reporting on this now. Makes me think that this is promo for TTPD and we’re going to see some very Dickinsonian influences on the album.”
Another Redditor wrote,
“Any of us are 6th cousins 3 times removed with whoever. This feels like a gross marketing ploy off a dead closeted woman for TS11.”
Another commented,
“6th cousins 3 times removed is hardly related at all so I just see this as a marketing ploy and hopefully Emily is in on it.”
A fourth comment read,
“Tbh, it will drive SO many swifties to go visit the Emily Dickinson museum if they know TS is somehow connected to her or wants to be associated with her. I would understand why they would be perfectly fine with being associated with the woman who boosts awareness of everything her name touches.”
A fifth commenter wrote,
“Something tells me rehashing this meaningless garbage just fits the new album’s aesthetic so much… almost like yet another annoying marketing ploy. I’m just… I can’t 😩 there’s too many all the time.”
Is Taylor Aware of Her Connection To the Famous Poet?
Taylor Swift has made several references to Emily Dickinson over the years, even before the Ancestry.com connection. While accepting her award for Songwriter-Artist of the Decade at the Nashville Songwriters Association International, she namedropped Emily in her speech, likening her songwriting style to a letter written by the poet’s great-grandmother. She also released her 2020 album Evermore on December 10, which happened to be Emily’s birthday. Not to mention the title’s rhymical closeness to “Forevermore” a term the poet famously used in one of her works.
Much like Taylor Swift’s famed success, Poet Emily Dickinson stood out as one of the most revered poets of her time. Although the poet, born in 1830 in Amherst, Massachusetts, only published anonymously during her lifetime, she managed to make an impact with her works, and today, remains one of the most important poets in American history.
