I understand that a lot of people have their own opinions, either good or bad, about how Taylor Swift officially went from country to pop as she just released the new album, 1989. For me personally, I have always loved Taylor Swift and will always love her because I think she’s a real prodigy. Instead of talking about the more recent version of Taylor, I just wanted to remind everyone of how she used to be a big country star in her earlier career, and point out some great songs in her country albums. So here we go:
This was the cover of Taylor Swift’s very first album, Taylor Swift. She had signed her first contract with Big Machine Records as a singer-songwriter when she was 14 years old. Taylor for sure made a big impression to country fans from the beginning, as she became the youngest person to single-handedly write and perform a number one song on the Hot Country Songs Chart. I was in high school when this album first came out and I remember every single girl at my school obsessing over Taylor Swift, and even some boys, reluctantly. Taylor was 16 years old at the time, and she was already writing narrative love songs about her own experiences. (Yes, because she’s a genius and again, a real prodigy.) My favorite song on this album was “Teardrops on My Guitar.” I liked the song a lot more in my high school days, and now I don’t know how I feel about it. The lyrics are a bit cheesy, but I still like the melody, the guitar sound and her voice.
A few single albums were released right after, including Tim McGraw and Our Song. Both songs are true to the “country-ness” of Taylor Swift, since they have more country-sounding instruments and lyrics. (Listen to those songs and listen to her newer songs. They’re completely different sounding.) Taylor toured all over the country in support of Taylor Swift, and the single albums kept the teenage girls fans excited while she prepared for her second album, Fearless.
Just like the first album, Taylor continued to write at least a few of her songs by herself, with some help of others, to keep up with the title “country singer-songwriter.” This album was a huge commercial success for Taylor, as it became the best-selling album of the year, and stayed number one on Billboard 200 for 11 weeks. 5 singles spawned from Fearless, and my favorites are, just like many others, “Love Story” and “You Belong With Me.” I can still remember Taylor singing those songs on TV with her guitar and having a baby face.
Speak Now was released in 2010, and this is the album where I think Taylor Swift started showing signs of being “Pop” instead of country. The instruments sound relatively modern, beats are faster, and she was rarely performing with a guitar and boots on anymore at this point. Some songs had definitely more country feels than others, depends on what the listeners would decide what defines “country.” Her lyrics were still her narratives about boy-centric themes and breakups, but I felt that she was more of a grown up than a young teenage girl. It may have been because I was about to be out of high school myself, or because Taylor was then in her 20s and started talking about college boys. I don’t really know. (If you want to know more about this album, click here.)
As she released her next album, Red, her fans admitted that she wasn’t so country anymore, and I don’t really see any true country songs on it, so we will skip it for now. Here is a list of songs (some of them were mentions above) that I selected in reminiscence of the old “country” Taylor Swift:
- “Teardrops on My Guitar” – Taylor Swift
- “Our Song” – Taylor Swift
- “Fearless” – Taylor Swift
- “You Belong with Me” – Taylor Swift
- “Love Story” – Taylor Swift
- “Speak Now” – Taylor Swift
- “Mine” – Taylor Swift
- “Back to December” – Taylor Swift
Even after Taylor went pop, her lyrics stayed pretty much the same as before, and she still writes her own songs. Hope everyone enjoyed reading this post and loves Taylor Swift as much as I do!
Minsu,
ofcourse I enjoyed your post, I loved it!
I could not agree more about the shift of people’s views on Taylor Swift, and how unfortunate it is that people choose to focus on all the negative sides to her changing from country to pop, and forgetting all those other songs that we grew up with.
I personally choose not to listen to her new music, because I like keeping Taylor’s old image in my head, being that innocent country girl who sings about love.
I agree, her lyrics have stayed constant throughout her albums, but for me, it isnt so much about the lyrics but about the music and sound (melody and pop track) that I do not like as much as her old stuff, the softer, sweet more country sound. I dont think society needs another pop singer!
I like how you did not give too much information, and combined the facts with your own opinion.
I wish people would remember the “old country” Taylor Swift, and that she goes back to that soft country sound that made me love her in the first place!
I have held back on getting to know Taylor Swift. In my case, I don’t think it is because she’s treading the line between “country” and “pop.” I like both styles of music, and the country singers I grew up listening to — Dolly Parton, Kenny Rogers, Willie Nelson, etc. — moved back and forth between them all the time. It isn’t like Taylor is the first country singer to hit it big in the mainstream. Instead, I think it’s an age thing. Because she is so young, I have lumped her in with teen performers like Hannah Montana/Miley Cyrus that aren’t worth taking seriously. I guess y’all are starting to change my mind, though. Thanks for the recommendations!
Back in middle school, and somewhat in high school, I was also a pretty big Taylor Swift fan, but I just can’t get into her new music. “Shake it Off” drives crazier than any other song on the radio right now. So I really enjoyed looking back at her older stuff, and remembering the times when those were the songs I connected with. “Tim Mcgraw” is still a song I like to listen, which is impressive since that was one of her first. No one can deny she has songwriting talent. If she didn’t, there’s no way she’d be as successful as she is today. On the other hand, seeing how different her performance and recording style is today from what is was ,I wonder if the boots, guitar and country sound are still a part of her, or something she grew out of. I think it would be cool to see her give a nod back to country, the genre where she was first beloved, at some point in the future.
I agree that her Speak Now album is when Taylor really began turning to pop. I actually went to one of her concerts during her tour for this album and I was surprised at how “pop-y” and non-country it felt. It was at the new Dallas Cowboys Stadium in Arlington so it wasn’t like the small, outdoor country concert venues I was used to. There was also a lot of light and pyrotechnic effects which I feel like are used more at pop concerts and not at country concerts because country concerts are more simple. Lastly, Taylor only wore cowboy boots once if I remember correctly. I honestly think her new album is great even though it is pop and I think it was the right choice for her to declare that she’s pop and go the direction she wanted to instead of trying to stay with country.
Taylor Swift has obviously proved that she can make an album that will sell like crazy. I am not a fan of her only because I think that her songs all have the same theme. Don’t get me wrong the girl has had huge success, but I think it was wrong to consider some of her albums “country.” At country award shows, she would be nominated after releasing a pop-like album. I think that her nomination should have went to an artist or band that has been immersed in country their whole career. Not hating, that shake it off parody video is great.
I’m glad someone blogged about Taylor Swift. It was funny at the CMA’s they kept bringing up how this year everyone was mourning the PPTSD (postpartum Taylor Swift disorder) this year. I remember when “Tim McGraw” came out and we had a Sirius radio, so it would read Taylor Swift “Tim McGraw” so it was always confusing because both are country artists names and it would cause me to double check what song was on. I really enjoyed the old Taylor and though her new stuff is cool too, it isn’t the same Taylor sound I fell in love with. I would say however that moving over the pop is something that may make her more money at the end of the day so I’m sure her decision to go more “poppy” wasn’t by accident.
I really think there is no one like Taylor Swift. Love her or hate her she really does have true talent and seems to always find a way to make her songs somewhat relatable. I remember listening to her first album on the bus in middle school. My favorite “old” Taylor songs are “Our Song” and “You Belong with Me.” She was always so good at creating stories and that definitely hasn’t changed with her transition into a more pop sound. I always though Taylor started in country because that’s where she could make it the easiest and then she could slowly work her way into mainstream. I love the fact that she embraces what people say about her and isn’t afraid to make fun of herself. Her new song “Blank Space” is a perfect example. If you haven’t seen the video you really should. It’s about as dramatic as it gets. I think Taylor definitely created her own path in the music industry.
As some of you know, I don’t really like Taylor Swift but I have to admit, I did not mind her back in high school. I would see everyone listening and talking about her even the guys would talk about her, in a different manner than the girl did of course. I know some of the lyrics to some of her old songs but for some reason, I cannot get into her more recently stuff, especially since she released Red. After that, I guess I just put her aside because she was not really country anymore but is can do whatever she wants and its been working out for her. But it is nice to hear that some of us did like her back then and we will probably always listen to some of her olds songs once in the while.
Taylor Swift at such a young age has accomplished a lot of things such as winning several Grammys and most recently with her new album,1989, she is the first female to succeed herself at the top of the US Pop 100 Billboard charts. I personally really like Swift because I can relate to a lot of her songs. I think that it is really awesome how she is able to write her own lyrics. Even though her audience is mostly teenage girls and I am in my early 20s I still listen to her music! I was kinda of upset that she was crossing over to pop but I was glad that she was pushing herself in trying new things.