LAWRENCE — Taylor Swift is a behemoth of entertainment, driver of an economic engine worth billions. A new book from a University of Kansas scholar shows how Taylor Swift and her unprecedented success illustrate how women, whether global icons or working moms, power the economy.
“Swiftynomics: How Women Mastermind and Redefine Our Economy,” by Misty Heggeness, associate professor of public affairs & administration and associate research scientist in KU’s Institute for Policy & Social Research, explores the concept of “Swiftynomics,” or how women influence the economy in ways both spectacular and often unrecognized.
Published by the University of California Press, “Swiftynomics” is available Jan. 27.
A renowned economist, Heggeness has long studied the role of women and young people in the economy. Also an avowed Swifty, she noted that during the COVID-19 pandemic, large numbers of women had to balance work with caring for their families.
“The data was showing different outcomes for mothers than it was for women without children. I had been writing a lot on the topic, and this was during the pandemic when Taylor released her albums ‘Folklore’ and ‘Evermore,’” Heggeness said. “It felt like so many of us were being forced to adjust work schedules and take on more care work — having to be more productive with the same 24 hours in a day. Taylor had found a way to continue being productive as well. I was impressed and decided a book about women and the economy needed a muse like Taylor.”
The resulting book tells its story through three main themes:
- The first examines Swift’s Eras Tour, a global tour of concerts, concert films and sold-out arenas that generated billions of dollars in revenue.
- It also coincided with Swift’s legal battles with Ticketmaster and her efforts to reclaim her intellectual property by rerecording Taylor’s Versions of her albums.
- Heggeness explores how 2023, the main year of the tour, coincided with women experiencing growing economic power and how it grew from the previous decade of economic trends.
The book also covers how women have historically been influential in the American economy, sharing stories of women like Francis Perkins, the first woman U.S. secretary of labor. Perkins, and many other unsung examples, illustrate how women have long not only survived, but thrived, in fields like economics, historically dominated by men, Heggeness said.
“Women have always presented themselves as economic agents, but that has often been ignored in history,” she said.
Finally, Heggeness offers policy prescriptions to help build a more sustainable environment for women in the economy and workplace, recognizing the contributions they have and continue to make and highlighting new opportunities where women have thrived. Throughout, she shares robust data blended with pop culture and accessible anecdotes about women, both famous and not, who have left the old system behind to thrive economically on their own while building opportunities for others.
Heggeness will take part in a tour of book talks, including a release day event at 7 p.m. Jan. 27 at Monarch Books & Gifts in Overland Park and a fireside chat with Barbara Bichelmeyer, KU provost and executive vice chancellor, at 7 p.m. Jan. 29 at Unity Temple, Kansas City, Missouri, sponsored by Rainy Day Books. Both events are open to the public.
Heggeness, founder and co-director of the Kansas Population Center and former principal economist and senior adviser at the U.S. Census Bureau, also created The Care Board in 2025, an innovative, interactive site that gathers information from numerous sources to illustrate the critical economic significance of care work that Americans do every day.
“One of my goals with this book is to get more women into economics and realize they can see themselves in it, and how they have always been part of the field,” Heggeness said. “I’ve always been passionate about helping women feel like they belong and really want to reach college-aged women and men as well, who will be the next generation of economists, professionals and caregivers who drive the economy for everyone.”