Columbia's own Lover Fest: Influencers, fans hosting Taylor Swift party for a good cause

This isn't the "Tortured Poets Department." It's USC's Department of Sport and Entertainment Management. 

On April 18, students and the professor behind a course at the University of South Carolina, "Life is Just a Classroom: Taylor’s Version," will host a public party at Tin Roof to culminate the course's first offering.

The party, which has a $5 cover and is for ages 18-plus, will feature content creators who specialize in Swift-related content, raffle prizes and vendors selling Swiftie-themed goods, like friendship bracelets. The party will be at Tin Roof in the Vista from 7 p.m. to 11 p.m.

The goal of the party is to raise money for the Gamecock Community Fund, an on-campus resource that provides basic needs like food and clothing for USC students, faculty and staff. 

"One of the things that Taylor Swift does when she goes to these different cities for concerts is she makes a sizable donation to the food pantry wherever she performed," said the course's professor, Kate Blanton. "So that's why I wanted to do a fundraiser for to replicate her efforts." 

The spring 2024 semester is the first time Blanton has offered the Swift-themed marketing course, which focuses on topics like branding, social media, tour management and merchandising. It won't be the last. 

Blanton said she's teaching a four-week version of the class in USC's Continuing Education department now, and will offer an online version of the class over the summer. 

"A lot of people were suspicious about what the content of the course would be like and how it would fit into the curriculum," Blanton said. "But I think now that my students have been in the class, they've talked about it on campus and more of our faculty and staff are learning more about it ... people understand the value of the class a little bit better, and how it fits into our student's academic and career goals."

The party at Tin Roof is just one piece of a three-day series of events aimed at introducing students to the business acumen of Swift. 

Blanton said a dozen content creators who specialize in Swift will be on-hand for a workshop and panel talk with USC students, including a demonstration of how some creators recreate Swift's concert outfits. There will also be a private screening of the Taylor Swift Era's Tour concert movie at The Nick, Blanton said. 

Though most of the course's events are reserved for USC students, Blanton said the public party at Tin Roof is already garnering a lot of interest. 

"It's going to be a really interesting dynamic of these really young college kids and also the older adults," she said.