Taylor Swift has done it again. She just released her fifth album 1989, and it is topping the iTunes charts. This is the first album of Swift’s that has been labeled as a “Pop” album, yet her fan base remains one of the largest in the music industry, and is continually growing. With a new style and sound, Swift continues to leave her fans in awe with surprising new melodies and deeper messages decoded in her lyrics. Even with a completely new direction in her sound, 1989 is predicted to be even more successful than her previous released albums. “Industry sources now predict the fast-selling set may sell over 900,000 copies in the week ending November 2nd. As earlier reported, that would secure Swift the largest sales week for any album since March of 2013” (billboard).
How Swift manages to relate to all of her fans in a completely new sense is beyond me, but her loyalty has remained due to her ability to continually write down to earth lyrics. The album has 13 songs, and the deluxe version has an additional 3 songs, 3 voice memos, and 13 polaroids. If 1989 is able to sell over a million copies within its first couple weeks, she will be the first female artist to have three million-selling weeks. The other two million-selling weeks came from her albums Red (2012), and Speak Now (2010). How does Taylor Swift remain so successful?
Unlike many other artists, Taylor Swift does not sugar coat anything. She is not ashamed of who she is, and she is willing to own up to her mistakes through her music. Whether it is a break-up, a period of time with low self-esteem, finding new love, trying to find yourself, or simply not letting others get to you, Taylor Swift can write about it. Not many artists put their entire personal lives into their songs. Although Swift is criticized many times for doing so, it is what makes her so relatable. Her songs are not just empty beats of music, but true stories that make the listener feel something. 1989 marks a paradigm shift for Taylor Swift. The album is labeled 1989 in honor of the year Swift was born, and her love for 80’s pop music. You will notice the electro-pop beat in her songs, which is a complete change from her previous albums.
Time Magazine stated, “The expertly crafted sound of 1989 that marks her most impressive sleight of hand yet- shifting the focus away from her past and onto her music, which is as smart and confident as it’s ever been. Who are these songs about? When she sounds this good, who cares?”
As an artist, Swift surprises her fans with each album. She always keeps us guessing, but remains her true self while doing so. No matter what style, she still manages to be down to earth and grateful. For example, Swift posted an Instagram video of herself on the release date of 1989 of her at Target dancing around the set of TV’s playing never-before-seen video footage of the creation of #TS1989. Her excitement for the music is what makes the fans so excited. As for the haters of 1989, they’re just gonna hate hate hate hate…so get the album if you have not so that you can Shake It Off with the one and only T. Swift.