The Words and Music of Taylor SwiftThis scholarly analysis of the music of Taylor Swift identifies how and why she is one of the early 21st century's most recognizable and most popular stars. By the age of 13, singer-songwriter Taylor Swift had already inked a development deal with a major record label. This early milestone was an appropriate predictor of what accomplishments were to come. Now a superstar artist with an international fanbase of millions and several critically acclaimed and commercially successful albums, Swift has established herself as one of the most important musicians of the 21st century. This accessible book serves Taylor Swift fans as well as students of contemporary popular music and popular culture, critically examining all of this young artist's work to date. The book's organization is primarily chronological, covering Taylor Swift's album and single releases in order of release date while also documenting the elements of her music and personality that have made her popular with fans of country music and pop music across a surprisingly diverse age range of listeners. The chapters address how Swift's songs have been viewed by some fans as anthems of empowerment or messages of encouragement, particularly by members of the LGBTQ community, those who have been bullied or been seen as outsiders, and emerging artists. The final chapter places Swift's work and her public persona in the context of her times with respect to her use of and relationship with technology—for example, her use of social media and songwriting technology—and her expressions of a new type of feminism that is unlike the feminism of the 1970s. |
Contents
1 | |
5 | |
3 The Mean Era | 27 |
4 1989 and Beyond | 55 |
5 Beyond Music | 69 |
6 The Singer or the Song? | 73 |
A Woman of Her Time | 77 |
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Accessed February 17 Accessed June acoustic guitar Antonoff arrangement artists backing vocals Bad Blood ballad bass Big Machine Records Billboard 126 Billboard 200 Bitch Magazine bonus tracks brief report CD booklet charts chorus collaborative connection country music debut album drums electric guitar empowerment Entertainment Weekly fact favorable review Fearless February 17 feminism feminists focus Girl Hannah Montana included Interestingly Kanye listener Martin and Shellback Max Martin McGraw melodic Movie music videos musical setting musicians MySpace Nathan Chapman November October performance perhaps phrase Picture to Burn pop music popular producers relationship release report on Swift's rock Rolling Stone seems singer singer-songwriter singing single social media song's songwriter sound Sparks Fly Speak Spotify Story style success suggests Swift's albums Swift's career Swift's character Swift's compositions Swift's early Swift's lyrics Swift's songs Taylor Swift Teardrops theme Tim McGraw Time.com tune USA Today verses Words and Music York