Bearded Taylor Swift transformed into man for music video
Prosthetics and make-up has made Taylor Swift unrecognisable in her new music video aimed at highlighting gender inequality.
An arrogant boss, a hot-tempered tennis player and an inconsiderate commuter are among the characters acted by a bearded, dark-haired Swift in ‘The Man’.
On Instagram, Swift thanked Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson for voicing her character and her dad Scott for “making his acting debut as unimpressed umpire” in one of the scenes which represent the many advantages Swift sees men as having over women.
View this post on InstagramOh man…music video tomorrow at 7 A.M. EST! And I’m going to be chatting/answering your questions/mansplaining the video on YouTube starting an hour before at 6 A.M. EST
A post shared by Taylor Swift (@taylorswift) on Feb 26, 2020 at 5:01am PST
“Thank you to the entire cast and crew for helping me become the man I always knew I could be,” she added.
For the transformation, the 30-year-old star was given a fake jaw, nose and pair of lips – and whole lot of vanity.
The video opens with the man looking out the window of his fancy office, before walking among his admiring employees as he shouts and fist-bumps.
It also shows him “manspreading” on the subway by sitting with his legs wide open, before urinating at the station.
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Other characters include a wealthy businessman being served champagne on an expensive yacht as women sunbathe around him, an older man marrying a far younger woman and a tennis player throwing what Swift described as a “mantrum”.
In the tennis scene, Swift’s father mouths a sassy “no” in response to the man giving him the middle finger.
As the man walks off the pretend set, Dwayne Johnson’s voice can be heard asking if the take was okay.
The director responds with “pretty good,” before asking if the man could “try and be sexier” and “more likeable” this time and complimenting a female actress for her “astonishing” effort.
The single, which was released a month before the music video, reflects gender inequality in the workplace, parenting and in Swift’s own career.
It comes after Swift was engaged in a high-profile dispute over ownership of her masters with talent manager Scooter Braun.
Braun’s company, Ithaca Holdings, bought Swift’s first record label in a deal reportedly worth more than $300m (£222m).
The deal – which Swift opposed – gave Braun the rights to her first six albums.
She nods to the dispute in the video’s subway scene as a “No Scooters” sign is shown beside one reading “Missing. If found return to Taylor Swift”.
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Ahead of the video’s release, Swift took part in a Q&A with fans in which she said how much she enjoyed working on the clip.
“I loved the months of prep, meetings, location scouting, set design, mood boards, deciding every detail down to the wardrobe each actress/actor wore and working with them on set,” she wrote.
View this post on InstagramMan down. After a massive mantrum. 🎾 #TheManMusicVideo is out now!
A post shared by Taylor Swift (@taylorswift) on Feb 27, 2020 at 4:06am PST
When asked about the identity of the man, she added: “Who plays the man? A bo$$.”
‘The Man’ was released weeks after critics and members of the music industry slammed the Brit Awards for the lack of female nominees in this year’s mixed gender categories.
