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Taylor Swift Gets Discovered
Taylor Swift first got discovered in the Bluebird Cafe located in Nashville, Tenessee by Scott Borchetta (music executive) when she was performing there for the first time. He signed her on to a label (which was not created at the time) and got a contract with him. Big Machine Records was formed in 2005. This is significant because if they hadn't met that night, she probably would not have gotten discovered at such a young age. In 2006, Swift released her debut album with the label. -
VMA Kanye West Incident
At the MTV Video Music Awards, Taylor Swift was giving her acceptance speech for Best Female Video when Kanye West interrupted her and said that Beyonce had "one of the best videos of all time". This got a lot of attention everywhere, especially on Twitter and this was what everyone talked about for a long time. Although Swift was the victim in this event, it actually got her a lot of attention. She was already famous, but after the incident, even more people knew her and supported her. -
Change of Genres
Taylor Swift's first 4 albums were country music, but when she released her 5th studio album titled "1989" it was a big shock since it was a pop album. Her previous album "Red" helped her with this transition. She decided to completely switch genres so that she can experiment more, evolve, and challenge herself. This was a huge change and it got her even more attention. Although she might have lost some fans, she also gained a lot more. In a way, it helped her stay on top. -
Taylor Swift's Battle With Apple Music
Swift took a stand against Apple Music for new artists about the 3-month trial. She wrote a letter to Apple in which she stated that during the 3-month trial that people get when they sign up, Apple Music will not be paying the creators of the songs (writers, producers, etc.). She wrote that it is unfair especially to new artists because they will not be paid for their work during this time and may not be able to support themselves financially. She won this battle and the policy was changed. -
Kanye West "Famous" Feud
When Kanye West wrote his song "Famous", the lyrics "I made that b-- famous" angered Swift. They had a phone call about this, but Swift claimed that she did not approve of these lyrics. Kim K. then posted a video of the infamous phone call, however, it was clearly edited. Despite this, no one believed Taylor Swift and everyone started hating on her, which caused her to disappear later that year. (the full phone call was leaked later and it turns out that Swift was telling the truth). -
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Taylor Swift's Disappearance
After her feud with Kanye West, Taylor Swift disappeared from the public eye because of the number of people that were hating on her. She thought that this is what everyone wanted. #taylorswiftisoverparty started trending on Twitter because no one believed her and she was constantly getting called a liar. During this time, no one knew what was going on with her and in 2017, she deleted all of her Instagram posts. This lead to her first new post which was a clue for her new album. -
Taylor Swift's Comeback
On Aug. 21, Taylor Swift posted a video of a snake to Instagram, which was a hint for her next album after her disappearance. She titled it "Reputation" and released it on Nov. 10. Although people said that this would be a huge fail, she proved everyone wrong. It actually became one of the best-selling albums in 2017. Later in 2018, her tour broke her own record for the highest-grossing U.S. tour by a woman. "Reputation" was a huge success which helped her get back on top. -
Taylor Swift's Sexual Assault Trial
The assault happened in 2013 when David Mueller groped Swift. When he was reported, he lost his job and he filed a lawsuit against Swift for $3million. Swift countersued him for $1 and won the trial later on in 2017. This case and the $1 actually had a huge significance because it showed that this was not about the money. Swift refused to back down, which encouraged more people to speak up about their assault. After the trial, there were way more sexual assaults reported than before. -
Midterm Election Post
Swift posted on Instagram about the midterm elections. She stated that she would be voting for Phil Bredesen for Senate and Jim Cooper for House of Representatives. She wrote that she would like to vote for a woman in office, Marsha Balckburn, but she can't support her because of what she stands for. Balckburn has voted against LGBTQ rights and against the reauthorization of the Violence Against Women Act. In the first 24 hrs of this post, there was a significant increase in voter registrations. -
Lover Is Released
Swift released "Lover" after her darker album "Reputation". It is a much brighter and happier album about the celebration of love. Even though there are many love songs on this album, Swift also wrote some of her most career-defining/most meaningful songs because she sings about problems we have in our society. Some examples of what she sings about are misogyny ( "The Man"), LGBTQ+ rights ("You Need To Calm Down"), self-love ("Me!"), and politics ("Only The Young") (which she released later). -
Taylor Swift Becomes Artist of the Decade
In 2019, Taylor Swift became Artist of the Decade at the 2019 American Music Awards because of her huge successes, her contribution to the music industry, and her effect on the 2010s pop culture. It is also because of the number of awards she has won in the years before multiple times, such as Artist of the Year and Album of the Year. That night, not only did she become Artist of the Decade, but she also broke Michael Jackson's record for most AMAs, which was also a huge accomplishment. -
Taylor Swift Becomes Woman of the Decade
Taylor Swift is the first person to become crowned "Woman of the Decade" by Billboard, which is a huge accomplishment. She earned this title because of her broad musical accomplishments and also because of what she stands for; feminism and artists. Although many people already knew her, this helped her further solidify her fame. In her speech, she talked about how different women and men are treated in the music industry, musicians she admires, her master recordings getting sold, and many more. -
Miss Americana Documentary Release
Miss Americana is a documentary film directed by Lana Wilson in which Taylor Swift talks through multiple stages of her life from the beginning of her career to the release of her album "Lover". She talks about criticism, politics, body image issues (eating disorder), sexual assault, love, fame, and much more. She goes into a lot of detail. This film helped people understand her story more and feel more connected to her, even the fans who have known her since the beginning of her career. -
Master Recording Getting Sold Post
Taylor Swift posted a tweet explaining everything about her master recordings (original and official recordings) getting sold. Scooter Braun sold the rights to Swift's first 6 albums. They were sold to a private equity company called Shamrock Holdings and they now own 100% of her music and videos. Because of this, she signed with Universal's Republic Records and decided to re-record her first 6 albums so that she could own her music and receive profits when her version of the song is played. -
First Re-Recording ("Fearless (Taylor's Version)")
Taylor Swift's first re-recorded album was "Fearless" (she titled the new one "Fearless (Taylor's Version)") and it was a huge success. Although the new version sounds almost the same as the old one, there were some changes she made that she thought would make the songs sound even better. In addition, she put out previously unreleased songs from the album, which she called "songs from The Vault". This also added to the success of the re-recorded album. It also broke a country music record.