Why is Taylor Swift so popular? - video Dailymotion

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Evening Standard

2/9/2024

Why is Taylor Swift so popular?

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00:00 Taylor Swift.

00:01 Taylor Swift.

00:02 Taylor Swift.

00:03 Taylor Swift.

00:04 Taylor Swift is everywhere. Times Person of the Year, Spotify's Most Streamed Artist,

00:09 with the highest grossing tour of all time and more album of the year Grammys than anyone

00:14 in history. But what is it that makes her so popular?

00:18 There's no way to explain Swift's success without first talking about her music. The

00:23 sheer volume of her work and creativity of her songwriting cannot be downplayed. She

00:28 released her first album in 2006 at the age of 17. Since then, she's released nine original

00:35 and four re-recorded albums, all of which have charted at number one in the US. And

00:41 with a new album coming out in April, she shows no sign of stopping.

00:45 Swift has written or co-written every song in her discography, and it's both the catchiness

00:50 and relatability of this music that's made her so popular. Her songwriting's been praised

00:55 by Stevie Nicks, Paul McCartney, and Bruce Springsteen. And of course, there's her ability

01:00 to constantly reinvent herself. Her latest world tour feeds off this idea, with fans

01:05 dressing up in outfits themed to each of her albums or eras.

01:09 And all of this is not to be sniffed at. Her tour is set to be the highest grossing of

01:14 all time and could boost the US economy by $5 billion.

01:17 "Started dropping sort of cryptic clues and things in my music."

01:23 Part of Swift's songwriting genius is her ability to put hidden messages or Easter eggs

01:28 in her songs and videos. Like a mystery or conspiracy, her fans spend hours guessing

01:33 what her songs and her posts could mean. And of course, this only builds the sense of community

01:38 in her fan base. Swift is not just admired for her music, but her business savvy and

01:43 strength in the face of adversity. In fact, she's been instrumental in changing the

01:47 business game for musicians.

01:49 In 2015, Apple Music changed its payment policies after Swift wrote an open letter campaigning

01:55 for better compensation. When her former record label rejected her bid to buy back her masters

02:00 and sold them to music exec Scooter Braun, she announced that she'd be re-recording

02:04 her first six albums. All four re-recordings thus far have performed better than the originals.

02:11 And all of this has paid. Not only has Swift solidified herself as a feminist icon, Forbes

02:16 now estimates her net worth at $1.1 billion.

02:20 After years of reluctance to discuss her political views, she's also started to be more open,

02:25 especially about issues affecting women. After the Supreme Court decided to overturn Roe

02:30 v. Wade, she came out saying that she was terrified and that the move had stripped women's

02:35 rights to their own bodies.

02:36 Of course, no conversation about Swift would be complete without mentioning her headline-making

02:41 personal life. Swift has dated a lot of famous faces and seems to be friends with half of

02:47 Hollywood. She's dated Harry Styles, Jake Gyllenhaal, and of course, NFL player Travis

02:52 Kelsey, which saw her catapulted into the sports world. While some sports fans have

02:56 been less than happy about her popping up on their screens, her presence has brought

03:00 a whole host of new fans to the game.

03:03 So Taylor Swift, musician, businesswoman, and campaigner. A global megastar for good

03:09 reason.

03:09 [MUSIC PLAYING]

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