Taylor Swift is one of the most successful recording artists in history. Her music is often described as pop, country and R&B with some electronic influences. She has also been known to write songs with a darker, more mature sound and lyrical content, including themes of love, romance and breakups. In addition to her own albums, she has contributed songs to other projects, such as The Hunger Games film soundtrack and the Fifty Shades trilogy of films. She is also a popular singer-songwriter on the tour circuit, performing to sold out audiences across North America and Europe.
Swift’s interest in music began at an early age, when she took part in children’s theatre productions and sang the national anthem before a Philadelphia 76ers game at age 11. At age 12, she was taught by computer repairman Ronnie Cremer how to play three chords on a guitar, which led her to write her first song, “Lucky You”. Her parents later helped her start her career as a professional performer and writer, with help from New York-based talent manager Dan Dymtrow. She modeled for Abercrombie & Fitch and recorded an original song on a Maybelline commercial, before landing an artist development deal with RCA Records at age 14. She left the label when she was 15, and a year later signed with Sony/ATV as a songwriter.
In 2005, Swift’s live performance at a Nashville industry showcase caught the attention of Scott Borchetta, a former DreamWorks Records executive who was forming his independent record label Big Machine Records. He signed her and helped her with the release of her debut album, Fearless. The following year, she dominated the industry awards circuit with multiple wins. She earned Country Music Association album of the year with Red, and won the MTV VMA’s best female video for her debut single, “You Belong with Me”.
By the end of 2012, Swift was a superstar, dominating the charts and rewriting history with a whirlwind worldwide concert tour. She wrote nine of the 16 tracks on Red alone, and worked with a range of producers including Max Martin, Ed Sheeran, Liz Rose, Nathan Chapman and Gary Lightbody. She also wrote and performed on the soundtracks for The Hunger Games and a couple of songs for Little Big Town’s seventh studio album, The Breaker.
On her fourth album, Taylor pushed the boundaries of country music, embracing synth-pop and pop with an experimental feel. It was her most successful release to date, reaching number one on the Billboard 200 and becoming the fastest-selling album of 2021. Its lead single, “Blank Space”, was a huge hit, and the album spawned five more Top 10 hits.
With her fifth studio album, 1989, Swift returned to her roots and made a classic pop record that reclaimed her spot as one of the genre’s biggest stars. The album included a collaboration with rapper Kendrick Lamar and a cover of the Paul McCartney ballad “Dear Boy”, which topped the Billboard Hot 100.
