Meg Thompson
Since her breakthrough into stardom in 2006, Taylor Swift has been shaking up the music industry. Beginning with her self-titled country album debut, Swift took over the Hot 100’s and made quite the splash in the country music scene.
Over the past 15 years, Swift has released nine studio albums, three live albums, 11 Grammy awards with 41 nominations, and nine movie appearances. Her most recent venture is the re-recording and release of her hit album “Fearless.”
The original “Fearless” album dropped on Nov. 11, 2008. It had global success, featuring Swift’s single “Love Story,” which sold 6.5 million copies worldwide, according to Billboard magazine. “Fearless,” “Fifteen,” “White Horse” and “You Belong With Me”’ were released as the other four singles from the album. It went on to become one of Swift’s most popular albums to date and won her Album of the Year in 2010.
This made Swift the youngest artist to ever win that award. Whether it was on the radio in the car or blasting in your room with your friends, these songs related to an entire generation while they experienced teenage life. Not only were teenagers impacted but the entire world too. Junior Elisa White shared a few of her fond memories about discovering Swift’s music.
“My dad was actually the person who introduced me to Taylor right around my ninth birthday,” White shared. “Ultimately, I’m the biggest fan in my family, but my dad and I will still listen to ‘Fearless’ together from time to time.”
For all of her success, Swift has undergone challenges in her music career as well. One particularly difficult experience is what drove her to re-record some of her older music and re-release it for her fans.
She did this to regain financial and creative control of her original work.
The “Fearless: Taylor’s Version” album was released on April 9.
Old and new fans alike awaited the album, excited to relive the nostalgia that these songs bring up. White shared her skepticism about the re-release, but ultimately ended up loving “Taylor’s Version.”
“The impact of the album on me now is so much greater than when I was a kid, and the fact that she now owns the album is something I really admire her for.” White said. “Taylor’s Version has been on repeat in my car. It’s powerful and nostalgic.”
The album landed Swift on the 500 chart for the tenth time in her career. According to Rolling Stone, Swift saw 228.1 million song streams the week of the release. It is sitting Number 1 on the Top 200 Albums chart. Swift has seen an outpour of support as she goes on this journey to reclaiming her hard work.
