By Liana Jacob
MEET BRITISH Taylor Swift who only discovered she had an uncanny resemblance to the pop superstar after a case of mistaken identity led to her being mobbed by adoring fans.
Photographs show student, Laura Cadman (20), from Newcastle, UK, wearing Taylor Swift’s signature red lip pout, choppy blonde haircut and revealing a similar love of cats, while cuddling her black cat.
As a way to prove that she is in fact not the singer, another picture shows her holding up her British passport to her face.
Further images show her sharing a similar fashion sense with Taylor as she is pictured wearing a black crop-top and blue glittery skirt akin to the singer’s outfit during her Rock In Rio Festival show in Las Vegas in 2015.
Laura has admitted that she has been a fan of Taylor Swift for 10 years and when she attended the singer’s concert during her 1989 World Tour in 2015, she was bombarded with other Taylor Swift fans, also known as ‘Swifties’.
One in fact thought she was the singer and approached her for a picture, until she later realised she wasn’t and messaged Laura telling her that she hated her for ‘tricking people’.
“She said she hated me because she thought I was Taylor then heard me talk and realised I wasn’t her,” she said.
“She said that I shouldn’t do that because it was tricking people, but this confused me because everyone at the concert was dressed up as Tay – it’s what people do at her concerts.
“At the 1989 concert in Manchester, so many people approached me and asked for pictures. I took pictures with a bunch of people and they were so cute.
“It was lovely meeting and chatting to people about Taylor because I actually went to the concert alone and I felt really connected to all of the Swifties at the concert.
“Nothing prompted me to have this look – I am naturally blonde, reasonably tall and reasonably slim. The rest of my ‘Taylor Swift look’ just consists of classic red lipstick and eyeliner, which I personally think is the most flattering makeup on me.
“If I’m feeling unconfident on that day, I’ll always refer to one of her classic looks or if I’m particularly stuck for a special event, I love looking at her red carpet looks.
“Her style is very timeless and because we have a similar look, I know that whatever suits her will most likely suit me.
“I think she’s really beautiful; it’s a huge compliment. I think we resemble each other a bit, but she’s obviously quite a lot older than me so I definitely think I look a lot younger.
“I’ve been to her concerts and always keep up with the latest news – I’m a big fan and can’t wait for her next album. I really hope I can meet her someday and tell her how much her music has helped me.”
Throughout Laura’s adolescent life she has been faced with comments about her looking like Taylor and ever since her prom the comments just kept on coming.
“In high school a few people mentioned it in passing but I didn’t really see it,” she said.
“At prom lots of people said that I looked like Taylor in my pictures. I picked my dress because it kind of resembled her blue dress from her Our Song music video.
“Then after that I just got comments more often, I guess it’s because I was looking more grown up.
“They often do a double-take and say ‘woah, I thought you were Taylor’. I get a mixture of reactions; I’ve also had people take photos of me without my permission, which is unnerving.
“My mum gets bored of cashiers pointing it out because it happens all the time; she says she wants people to see me for me and appreciate that I’m pretty because I’m me, not because I look like Taylor.
“I often have people looking at me or talking about me which isn’t the best and I also get quite a lot of mean comments on my Instagram profile, which was hard to deal with at first but now I don’t care as much.”
As well as studying at university, Laura also chairs a feminist society group and volunteers for the sex education organisation Sexpression that teaches young people about consent and healthy relationships.
Her resemblance to the ‘Shake It Off’ chart-topper has also helped her connect with other women and further herself in business.
“It’s definitely the ultimate icebreaker,” she said.
“People usually mention it initially and it always gets the conversation going. It’s also given me the opportunity to work with a few businesses and has allowed me to use my small platform to talk about things that I am passionate about.
“I am very much my authentic self, but even if I purposely tried to look like her – who cares? It doesn’t hurt anyone.
“Judging someone and formulating an opinion about them based on their physical experience isn’t constructive.”
For more information visit: https://www.instagram.com/laurah/
