Taylor Alison Swift (born December 13, 1989 in West Reading, Pennsylvania) is an American pop and country music singer-songwriter who became one of the most successful entertainers of the early 21st century. Her songs about youthful heartbreak resonated with millions of fans, and mapped the coming-of-age of a generation.
Known for her wry wit, sexy persona, and fearless refusal to be drawn into gossip, Swift has reshaped the landscape of modern popular culture, and become a symbol of the millennial generation. She has released 10 albums to date, with her most recent album, Reputation, landing at the top of both the Billboard 200 and the Hot 100 chart. The album also marked her first collaboration with producers Max Martin and Shellback, who crafted the album’s unapologetic big pop sound and opened new sonic vistas for her.
In a career that’s spanned over two decades, Swift has written songs about everything from her own anxieties to those of women across the globe. She’s rewritten the rules of pop by making it cool to be smart, funny, and a little bit shady. She’s even reimagined the nature of celebrity itself, proving that it’s possible for an artist to have as much artistic integrity as she does.
Taylor’s more autobiographical songs have always had a strong ring of truth, but it’s her willingness to share small details like eye color, necklace shapes, astrological signs, clothing street names or, yes, stitches that make the experience of listening to her songs so visceral and intimate. It’s a strategy that has led to countless conspiracy theories, but it’s a part of what makes her such an honest and compelling artist.
At the beginning of her career, she earned a reputation for writing vindictive songs about exes. But after her second album, she corrected the perception of her character by giving a voice to a wide range of exes and by being willing to take credit for her own mistakes and admit that she could be wrong — something many people struggle with in their own relationships.
This slinky track from her album Red is a play on the idea that every adult life is just a high school reunion, and it’s probably her most sexy song to date. It also demonstrates that Swift is willing to go the extra mile for her fans. She not only enlisted the help of a slinky saxophone player but also incorporated the sounds of Bon Iver and HAIM into the folklore universe, which went on to win album of the year at the 2021 Grammys.
