Taylor Swift Says She Has to Choose Outfits + Words Carefully as a Role Model

Taylor Swift spoke about life as a role model on 'Live! With Kelly' back in October 2011, but the episode re-aired on Friday (March 23), according to Taste of Country. It's very topical stuff since Swift is so highly regarded by the 18-and-under crowd. Much has been made of the fact that Swift is essentially the poet laureate of the teen set, serving as the voice of this generation of youth as they navigate things like love, broken hearts, changing bodies and more.

Swift maintains a wholesome, squeaky clean image -- no late night paparazzi shots of her stumbling out of the club sans her knickers -- and did express that she is mindful of her position as a role model and that she's okay with it. In essence, she recognizes that it goes with the territory.

"I'm not uncomfortable with it,” she said. “You have to be conscious of that. If you’re choosing to put out music and be out there in the public, you have to be conscious of the fact that you are a part of the raising of the next generation and you do have an impact on that. So, choose your outfits and your words and your actions carefully. I think it matters. I think it really does. You can pretend it doesn’t, but it does."

Swift echoed these very sentiments in her '60 Minutes' interview back in November, acknowledging that today's musicians and pop stars do have a responsibility for "raising" the current generation and are therefore wholly accountable for their actions.

Thankfully, today's generation are able to to relate to Taylor Swift, who embraces the role and is cautious when it comes to her sphere of influence, instead of, say, a hot mess like Lindsay Lohan.