Taylor Swift Named Time’s 2023 Person of the Year

On Wednesday morning (Dec. 6), Time named Taylor Swift its 2023 Person of the Year.

Time Editor-in-Chief Sam Jacobs appeared on Today to make the announcement, explaining that Swift was selected from a short list of nine influential finalists.

“Picking one person who represents the eight billion people on the planet is no easy task. And certainly, in a year when the world is divided, there’s a lot of light and a lot of darkness, there were a number of different choices that could have represented 2023,” Jacobs explains.

“But we picked a choice, someone who represents joy,” he continues. “Someone who’s bringing light to the world. Someone who’s taken her own story and made it big enough for everyone.”

Along with the announcement that Swift is this year’s Person of the Year, Time also revealed the three separate magazine covers that will feature her, showcasing her and the different moods and looks that have predominated at various points in her career.  One cover shot even includes a cameo from one of the superstar’s cats. Scroll down to see all three photos.

Time‘s Person of the Year issue also features a rare, in-depth interview with Swift, who discusses the process of training for her Eras Tour and her relationship with Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce. She also traces the peaks and valleys of her time in the spotlight, elaborating on low moments including her feud with Kim Kardashian and Kanye West that once cut her career at its knees. Now, those types of experiences have left her with a unique awareness of the transience of fame.

“Nothing is permanent,” she explains. “So I’m very careful to be grateful every second that I get to be doing this at this level, because I’ve had it taken away from me before. There is one thing I’ve learned: My response to anything that happens, good or bad, is to keep making things. Keep making art.”