Here’s Why Monica Lewinsky Thinks Taylor Swift Would Be the Perfect Guest for Her Podcast
The activist is eager to talk about the pop star's Taylor's Version project on Reclaiming.
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A lot of podcast hosts would probably sacrifice an arm and a leg to have Taylor Swift as a guest, but Monica Lewinsky thinks her show would be a particularly good fit for the pop superstar.
While visiting The Late Show Thursday night (Feb. 20), the anti-bullying activist opened up about starting her new Reclaiming podcast, which debuted two days prior. Already, Lewinsky has had actress Olivia Munn and actor Alan Cumming as guests on the show.
“The act of reclaiming is really about getting something back that has been lost or taken from you,” Lewinsky told Stephen Colbert of the meaning of her show’s title, after which the host asked who her “white whale” guest would be.
“I think if I aim really high, I would say Taylor Swift,” the producer replied.
Conceding that the 14-time Grammy winner would likely be a hard get, Lewinsky went on to explain that Swift’s ongoing Taylor’s Version re-recording project — through which she’s been taking back ownership of her first six albums following her public struggle over her masters with former label Big Machine — is what makes the star perfect for the podcast.
“If you think about Taylor’s Versions, it’s really a reclamation,” Lewinsky told Colbert. “To lose your music catalog and figure out a way to get that back as your voice.”
For Lewinsky, reclamation has meant taking back her narrative after enduring years of harassment following her scandal with then-president Bill Clinton in 1998, back when she worked as a White House intern. Through public appearances — including a viral 2015 TED Talk — she’s spoken out about the effects of public shaming. It’s another thing she and Swift have in common, with the Eras Tour headliner having opened up multiple times about how slut-shaming has impacted her over the course of her career.
As for Swift’s re-recording project, the “Karma” singer has just two albums left to re-release. After dropping Fearless (Taylor’s Version) and Red (Taylor’s Version) in 2021 followed by Speak Now (Taylor’s Version) and 1989 (Taylor’s Version) in 2023, Swift now only has 2017’s Reputation and her 2006 self-titled debut album to do over.
Watch Lewinsky’s full Late Show interview above.
