In 2006, she released her debut single "Tim McGraw", then her self-titled debut album, which was subsequently certified multi-platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America and was nominated for the Best New Artist award at 50th Grammy Awards. In November 2008, Swift released her second album, Fearless, and the recording earned Swift four Grammy Awards, including the Album of the Year, at the 52nd Grammy Awards. Fearless and Taylor Swift finished 2008 at number-three and number-six respectively, with sales of 2.1 and 1.5 million. Fearless topped the Billboard 200 for 11 non-consecutive weeks; no album has spent more time at No. 1 since 2000. Swift was named Artist of the Year by Billboard Magazine in 2009. Swift released her third album Speak Now on October 25, 2010 which sold 1,047,000 copies in its first week.
In 2008, her albums sold a combined four million copies, making her the best-selling musician of the year in the United States, according to Nielsen SoundScan. Forbes ranked Swift 2009's 69th-most powerful celebrity with earnings of $18 million and 2010's 12th-most powerful celebrity with earnings of $45 million. Swift was ranked the 38th Best Artist of the 2000–10 decade by Billboard. In January 2010 Nielsen SoundScan listed Swift as the most commercially successful country (or country/pop crossover) artist in music history with over 28 million digital tracks sold. As of December 2010, she has sold over 16 million albums worldwide.
Album
Fearless: Story
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Fearless" | Taylor Swift, Liz Rose, Hillary Lindsey | 4:01 |
| 2. | "Fifteen" | Swift | 4:54 |
| 3. | "Love Story" | Swift | 3:56 |
| 4. | "Hey Stephen" | Swift | 4:14 |
| 5. | "White Horse" | Swift, Rose | 3:55 |
| 6. | "You Belong with Me" | Swift, Rose | 3:52 |
| 7. | "Breathe" (featuring Colbie Caillat) | Swift, Colbie Caillat | 4:23 |
| 8. | "Tell Me Why" | Swift, Rose | 3:20 |
| 9. | "You're Not Sorry" | Swift | 4:21 |
| 10. | "The Way I Loved You" | Swift, John Rich | 4:07 |
| 11. | "Forever & Always" | Swift | 3:45 |
| 12. | "The Best Day" | Swift | 4:05 |
| 13. | "Change" | Swift | 4:40 |
This album is called "FEARLESS," and she guess she'd like to clarify why we chose that as the title. To her, "FEARLESS" is not the absence of fear. It's not being completely unafraid. To her, FEARLESS is having fears. FEARLESS is having doubts. Lots of them. To her, FEARLESS is living in spite of those things that scare you to death. FEARLESS is falling madly in love again, even though you've been hurt before. FEARLESS is walking into your freshmen year of high school at fifteen. FEARLESS is getting back up and fighting for what you want over and over again … even though every time you've tried before, you've lost. It's FEARLESS to have that someday things will change. FEARLESS is having the courage to say goodbye to someone who only hurts you, even if you can't breathe without them. She think it's FEARLESS to fall for your best friend, even though he's in love with someone else. And when someone apologizes to you enough times for things they'll never stop doing, She think it's FEARLESS to top believing them. It's FEARLESS to say, "you're NOT sorry", and walk away. She think loving someone despite what people think is FEARLESS. She think allowing yourself to cry on the bathroom floor is FEARLESS. Letting go is FEARLESS. Then, moving on and being alright … That's FEARLESS too. But no matter what love throws at you, you have to believe in it. You have to believe in love stories and prince charmings and happily ever after. That's why she write these songs. Because she think love is FEARLESS.
Speak Now: Story
Speak now or forever hold your peace, the words said by preachers at the end of wedding ceremonies all over the world, right before the vows. It's a last chance for protest, a moment that makes everyone's heart race, and a moment she've always been strangely fascinated by. So many fantasize about bursting into a church, saying what they'd kept inside for years like in the movies. In real life, it rarely happens.
Real life is a funny thing, you know. In real life, saying the right thing at the right moment is beyond crucial. So crucial, in fact, that most of us start to hesitate, for fear of saying the wrong thing at the wrong time. But lately what she've begun to fear more than that is letting the moment pass without saying anything.
She think most of us fear reaching the end of our life, and looking back regretting the moments we didn't speak up. When we didn't say 'I love you.' When we should've said 'I'm sorry.' When we didn't stand up for ourselves or someone who needed help.
These songs are made up of words she didn't say when the moment was right in front of me. These songs are open letters. Each is written with a specific person in mind, telling them what she meant to tell them in person. To the beautiful boy whose heart she broke in December. To my first love who she never thought would be her first heartbreak. To hear band. To a mean man she used to be afraid of. To someone who made my world very dark for a while. To a girl who stole something of mine. To someone she forgive for what he said in front of the whole world.
Real life is a funny thing, you know. In real life, saying the right thing at the right moment is beyond crucial. So crucial, in fact, that most of us start to hesitate, for fear of saying the wrong thing at the wrong time. But lately what she've begun to fear more than that is letting the moment pass without saying anything.
She think most of us fear reaching the end of our life, and looking back regretting the moments we didn't speak up. When we didn't say 'I love you.' When we should've said 'I'm sorry.' When we didn't stand up for ourselves or someone who needed help.
These songs are made up of words she didn't say when the moment was right in front of me. These songs are open letters. Each is written with a specific person in mind, telling them what she meant to tell them in person. To the beautiful boy whose heart she broke in December. To my first love who she never thought would be her first heartbreak. To hear band. To a mean man she used to be afraid of. To someone who made my world very dark for a while. To a girl who stole something of mine. To someone she forgive for what he said in front of the whole world.
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Mine" | 3:50 |
| 2. | "Sparks Fly" | 4:20 |
| 3. | "Back to December" | 4:53 |
| 4. | "Speak Now" | 4:00 |
| 5. | "Dear John" | 6:43 |
| 6. | "Mean" | 3:57 |
| 7. | "The Story of Us" | 4:25 |
| 8. | "Never Grow Up" | 4:50 |
| 9. | "Enchanted" | 5:52 |
| 10. | "Better Than Revenge" | 3:37 |
| 11. | "Innocent" | 5:02 |
| 12. | "Haunted" | 4:02 |
| 13. | "Last Kiss" | 6:07 |
| 14. | "Long Live" | 5:17 |
Early Life
Swift was born and raised in Wyomissing, Pennsylvania to Andrea (née Finlay), a homemaker, and Scott Swift, a stockbroker. Her maternal grandmother, Majorie Finlay, was an opera singer. Swift has a younger brother, Austin.
When she was in fourth grade, she won a national poetry contest with a three-page poem entitled "Monster In My Closet". At the age of 10, a computer repairman showed her how to play three chords on a guitar, sparking her interest in learning the instrument. Afterwards, she wrote her first song, "Lucky You". She began writing songs regularly and used it as an outlet to help her with her pain from not fitting in at school. She was a victim of bullying, and often wrote songs to express her emotions. Swift also started performing at karaoke contests, festivals, and fairs around her hometown. When she was 12, she devoted an entire summer to writing a 350-page novel, which remains unpublished. Her first major show was a well-received performance at the Bloomsburg Fair. Swift attended Hendersonville High School but was subsequently homeschooled for her junior and senior years. In 2008, she earned her high-school diploma.
Swift's greatest musical influence is Shania Twain. Her other influences include LeAnn Rimes, Tina Turner, Dolly Parton, and her grandmother. Although her grandmother was a professional opera singer, Swift's tastes always leaned more toward country music. In her younger years, she developed a love for Patsy Cline and Dolly Parton. She also credits the Dixie Chicks for demonstrating the impact you can make by "stretching boundaries".
[update]
Swift was born and raised in Wyomissing, Pennsylvania to Andrea (née Finlay), a homemaker, and Scott Swift, a stockbroker. Her maternal grandmother, Majorie Finlay, was an opera singer. Swift has a younger brother, Austin.
When she was in fourth grade, she won a national poetry contest with a three-page poem entitled "Monster In My Closet". At the age of 10, a computer repairman showed her how to play three chords on a guitar, sparking her interest in learning the instrument. Afterwards, she wrote her first song, "Lucky You". She began writing songs regularly and used it as an outlet to help her with her pain from not fitting in at school. She was a victim of bullying, and often wrote songs to express her emotions. Swift also started performing at karaoke contests, festivals, and fairs around her hometown. When she was 12, she devoted an entire summer to writing a 350-page novel, which remains unpublished. Her first major show was a well-received performance at the Bloomsburg Fair. Swift attended Hendersonville High School but was subsequently homeschooled for her junior and senior years. In 2008, she earned her high-school diploma.
Swift's greatest musical influence is Shania Twain. Her other influences include LeAnn Rimes, Tina Turner, Dolly Parton, and her grandmother. Although her grandmother was a professional opera singer, Swift's tastes always leaned more toward country music. In her younger years, she developed a love for Patsy Cline and Dolly Parton. She also credits the Dixie Chicks for demonstrating the impact you can make by "stretching boundaries".
[update]
