Monterey Bay Aquarium re-releases vintage otter tee worn by Taylor Swift to raise funds
By Tim Fang
After Taylor Swift was seen wearing a vintage Monterey Bay Aquarium otter t-shirt in a movie promoting her latest album, the aquarium has reissued the shirt to raise funds for its Sea Otter Program, raising more than $1 million.
The aquarium said they had been receiving a surge in donations and interest after the musician wore the shirt in the movie “Official Release Party of a Showgirl“, coinciding with the release of her latest album “The Life of a Showgirl.” Many of the donations were $13, Swift’s favorite number.
“Intentional or not, by putting our sea otter conservation work in the spotlight, this has brought a new era of support and awareness to the Aquarium’s long history of ocean conservation,” said a statement on the aquarium’s website Thursday.
After tracking down the original artwork of the shirt, which was first printed in the 1990s and features two otters swimming, the aquarium launched the fundraiser. The original shirt was printed by Harborside Graphics, which was later subsumed into Liberty Graphics based in Maine.
Aquarium officials said the shirts feature PVC-free water-based inks and are 100% cotton that does not shed microplastics. Reducing pollution from plastic, which often ends up in oceans, is one of the aquarium’s main missions.
The shirts, which are available in adult and kid sizes, are $65.13. As of about 11 a.m. Thursday, the fundraiser had raised more than $600,000 out of a $1.3 million goal.
By 3 p.m., more than $1.1 million had been raised. The aquarium said supplies of the shirt would be limited.
Released on Oct. 3, “The Life of a Showgirl” is the 14-time Grammy-award winner’s 12th studio album. Swift announced the album in August on “New Heights,” the podcast hosted by her fiancé, Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce, and his brother, former Philadelphia Eagles center Jason Kelce.
All 12 tracks of the album hold the top 12 spots in this week’s Billboard Hot 100, with “The Fate of Ophelia” holding the top spot on the chart.
