Taylor Swift’s Eras, the highest-grossing concert tour in history, concluded in London this week but its effect can still be seen on young women everywhere – with their tour T-shirts, arms stacked with friendship bracelets and the ubiquitous cowboy hat.
The accessory has been a regular sighting at Swift’s concerts – the former Liverpool manager Jürgen Klopp even wore one to see her in June. But it is also a trend that goes beyond the might of Swift. This month alone, the cowboy hat has been spotted at Copenhagen fashion week and at the Olympics, worn by long jumper Tara Davis-Woodhall.
The Beyoncé effect is also at play. The singer wore one on the front of her country album Cowboy Carter, released in March. In response, searches for “cowboy hat” increased by 250% on the John Lewis website.
Pinterest reports that in the last six months, searches for “cowboy hat aesthetic” and “cowboy hat” have gone up by 45% and 20% respectively, while the resale app Depop says searches are up 99% since January. “With both Taylor Swift and Beyoncé deeply rooted in the country scene, cowboy hats are not only a way to add a fun flair to an outfit, but also a distinct symbol of fandom,” says a Depop spokesperson, Agus Panzoni.
As Medina Azaldin, the beauty editor at Elle and self-confessed Swiftie, explains, the cowboy hat has become a signature of the fanbase rather than star. “I wouldn’t necessarily associate Taylor herself with cowboy hats any more – [her country music look] was a very brief period – but it brings a sense of nostalgia and fun,” she says. “And Swifties love a fun accessory.”
Azaldin says Swifties are not the first fanbase to take up the cowboy hat – Harry Styles fans wore them in 2023, as did the Beyhive for Beyoncé’s Renaissance tour. They could be seen as the most obvious example of a wider trend of dressing up for concerts but they are moving beyond the dressing-up box too. “They have now branched into both mainstream and designer fashion. Miu Miu and Jacquemus have both released their own upmarket cowboy hats, as spotted at Copenhagen fashion week, adding a touch of chic to the playful accessory,” says Panzoni.
The cowboy hat dates back to the 19th century. Worn first by cowboys, and then by country music stars, Stetson has been producing them since 1865. The company is enjoying a renaissance thanks to a new generation discovering the designs. The Corral, a classic shape that costs $160 (£122), is a bestseller. “With all the recent cultural references, an increase in awareness has been a result, and interest in headwear is growing,” says the managing director of Stetson Europe, Sebastian Boekholt. He says they tend to be reserved for special occasions. “As we do not have the natural cowboy living in Europe, [that’s] the time people chose to wear a western [a cowboy hat].”
In the US, the cowboy hat is often tied to Republican-style patriotism. This summer, however, it has been spotted in the crowd at both the Democratic national convention and the Republican national convention.
Francesca T Royster, the author of Black Country Music: Listening for Revolutions, says the symbolism shifts depending on the wearer, but she puts Beyoncé central to its signalling in 2024. “In the DNC photos, I see the rocking of distinctly Beyoncé-inspired cowboy hats as reclaiming US patriotism from a white, patriarchal worldview,” she says. “Those hats are speaking to a legacy that [Kamala] Harris is a part of a new way of thinking about US citizenship. The Republicans’ cowboy hats, meanwhile, could be a harkening to ‘The Good Ole Days’ – especially when combined with the stars and stripes inner brims. But I think there’s more going on – I see a little bit of Beyoncé influencing these hat wearers too.”
Ultimately, says Royster, the cowboy hat has multiple meanings, which may be why it is seen everywhere from political conventions to stadiums and fashion weeks. “The gesture of rocking the cowboy hat this season can be a way of claiming swagger, rebellion, hipness, eccentricity, history, hard work, nostalgia and, yes, sometimes also conformity.”
