Music Taylor Swift
- Thread starter ha_rooney
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Pop music will always appeal to the masses across all age groups. It’s pretty uninspiring and generic music - but that’s exactly what the wider audiences like. I think she’s definitely better than when she started which was just awful bubblegum pop/ country for the want of a better tern and the last decade has seen her become a decent artist but that’s about it.
I agree that I don’t get the feverish following either. I mean she’s no Michael Jackson esque lightning in a bottle superstar. Maybe just being palatable for a wide audience for a very long time (15-17 years is it?) and the general quality of mainstream music has died (indies are now where it’s at).
I've tried to listen to her music and get the hype but that first song sounds like a jingle from a Nickleodeon show.1989 Taylor's version dropped. Several fresh tracks from the vault
#95 "Look What You Made Me Do" (2017)
This album is not my cup of tea. Honestly thought she had lost the plot at this stage because Reputation is the most anti Taylor Swift album you could possibly imagine.
Although I can acknowledge she was fed up with the cnuts Kanye and Kim, the tabloids constantly writing nonsense about her, and the need for firing back, I’m glad she quickly got over this corny, dark and lame emo phase.
This song isn’t even on my playlist but one and a half billion views on Youtube and a billion plays on Spotify means it’s somehow one of the most listened to Taylor Swift songs. And for that reason I very reluctantly have to give it a spot in the top 100.
The one thing I’ll say in defense of the album is that a lot of people think it’s her best one performed live. Rep stadium tour is on Netflix so you can judge it for yourself. Meanwhile I’ll keep pretending this era of Taylor Swift never even happened.
This album is not my cup of tea. Honestly thought she had lost the plot at this stage because Reputation is the most anti Taylor Swift album you could possibly imagine.
Although I can acknowledge she was fed up with the cnuts Kanye and Kim, the tabloids constantly writing nonsense about her, and the need for firing back, I’m glad she quickly got over this corny, dark and lame emo phase.
This song isn’t even on my playlist but one and a half billion views on Youtube and a billion plays on Spotify means it’s somehow one of the most listened to Taylor Swift songs. And for that reason I very reluctantly have to give it a spot in the top 100.
The one thing I’ll say in defense of the album is that a lot of people think it’s her best one performed live. Rep stadium tour is on Netflix so you can judge it for yourself. Meanwhile I’ll keep pretending this era of Taylor Swift never even happened.
So, this playlist is for people who might be curious as to why Taylor Swift is so popular and haven't heard anything they think warrants the attention.
I have skipped the first 3 albums, "Taylor Swift", "Fearless", and "Speak Now". "Speak Now" has a couple songs that are beginning to show the final form of Taylor Swift, but they are marred by really heavy handed production. The first two are country pop juvenalia that I don't find interesting.
To appreciate Swift, you need to approach the music without expecting her to be like the giants of music in your own hall of fame. She's not Dylan. I think if you can appreciate pure melody, harmony, counter melodies, and pop song craft - as you would if you were a fan of The Beach Boys - you can hear her talent. She has used cowriters on most of her hits, but she does play guitar and piano and write most of the material. She's not an empty frame, like most pop divas.
Taylor took one step into pop with her 4th album, "RED", (Taylor's a red!), where she mixed emotional songs with joyous party anthems. This was when she was 22, and the song of the same name reflects this new carefree, fun attitude. Still not fully formed in terms of her voice as an artist, but fun.
Her next album, "1989" firmly eschewed the country pop and aimed for a commercial pop sound, resulting in her worldwide smash hit (which I haven't included, you've heard it enough). I didn't fully understand "1989" until I heard Ryan Adams' stripped down semi-acoustic version of the album. Then the song structures, lyrics, and melodies came through.
She followed up this pop album with an overproduced mess "Reputation", which was a reaction to being ensnared in the shitty pop world of Kanye and the Kardashians. Despite the production, there are still some great songs that come through.
"Lover" is a record made for dance parties. Some great melodies, about half the album is fluff. Up until this point, Taylor has been hitting about 50% on her albums, half the songs disappearing in clouds of cotton candy.
Then she did her two stripped down pandemic albums, and this is where the true artist came to the fore.
Her latest album, "Midnights", is a more adult contemporary album within the world of pop. Still writes some bangers, but also turns a bit introspective.
So give it a go.
I keep trying to add the playlist but I can't seem to do it anonymously, so here are the songs, add them to your own Spotify list. All versions are Taylor's Versions, obvs.
I have skipped the first 3 albums, "Taylor Swift", "Fearless", and "Speak Now". "Speak Now" has a couple songs that are beginning to show the final form of Taylor Swift, but they are marred by really heavy handed production. The first two are country pop juvenalia that I don't find interesting.
To appreciate Swift, you need to approach the music without expecting her to be like the giants of music in your own hall of fame. She's not Dylan. I think if you can appreciate pure melody, harmony, counter melodies, and pop song craft - as you would if you were a fan of The Beach Boys - you can hear her talent. She has used cowriters on most of her hits, but she does play guitar and piano and write most of the material. She's not an empty frame, like most pop divas.
Taylor took one step into pop with her 4th album, "RED", (Taylor's a red!), where she mixed emotional songs with joyous party anthems. This was when she was 22, and the song of the same name reflects this new carefree, fun attitude. Still not fully formed in terms of her voice as an artist, but fun.
Her next album, "1989" firmly eschewed the country pop and aimed for a commercial pop sound, resulting in her worldwide smash hit (which I haven't included, you've heard it enough). I didn't fully understand "1989" until I heard Ryan Adams' stripped down semi-acoustic version of the album. Then the song structures, lyrics, and melodies came through.
She followed up this pop album with an overproduced mess "Reputation", which was a reaction to being ensnared in the shitty pop world of Kanye and the Kardashians. Despite the production, there are still some great songs that come through.
"Lover" is a record made for dance parties. Some great melodies, about half the album is fluff. Up until this point, Taylor has been hitting about 50% on her albums, half the songs disappearing in clouds of cotton candy.
Then she did her two stripped down pandemic albums, and this is where the true artist came to the fore.
Her latest album, "Midnights", is a more adult contemporary album within the world of pop. Still writes some bangers, but also turns a bit introspective.
So give it a go.
I keep trying to add the playlist but I can't seem to do it anonymously, so here are the songs, add them to your own Spotify list. All versions are Taylor's Versions, obvs.
- Cruel Summer - Lover
- Bejeweled - Midnights
- august - folklore
- invisible string - folklore
- New Year's Day - Reputation
- Maroon - Midnights
- Miss Americana & The Heartbreak Prince - Lover
- 22 - Red
- Anti-hero - Midnights
- Question...? - Midnights
- Paper Rings - Lover
- tolerate it - evermore
- This Love - 1989
- Cornelia Street - Lover
- Lavender Haze - Midnights
- King Of My Heart - Reputation
- Out Of The Woods - 1989
- You're On Your Own, Kid - Midnights
- Call It What You Want - Reputation
- ivy - evermore
- Death By A Thousand Cuts - Lover
- We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together - Red
- the1 - folklore
- Paris - Midnights (deluxe)
- Getaway Car - Reputation
- mirrorball - folklore
- this is me trying - folklore
- 'tis the damn season - evermore
- Bad Blood - 1989
- Look What You Made Me Do - Reputation
- State Of Grace - Red
- How You Get The Girl - 1989
- right where you left me - evermore
- Welcome To New York - 1989
- So It Goes... - Reputation
- Holy Ground - Red
- no body, no crime - evermore
- willow - evermore
- my tears ricochet - folklore
- You Need To Calm Down - Lover
- The Lucky One - Red
- Blank Space - 1989
- champagne problems - evermore
- This Is Why We Can't Have Nice Things - Reputation
- Mastermind - Midnights
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#94 "It’s Nice to Have a Friend" (2019)
A short and simple song about childhood and flashback.
Originally went under the radar. Given a new life last year thanks to... a killer doll horror movie.
A short and simple song about childhood and flashback.
Originally went under the radar. Given a new life last year thanks to... a killer doll horror movie.
That’s the thing for me. I’ve heard enough of her over the years to know that it’s all extremely basic and generic pop music. She isn’t a gifted vocalist as even contemporaries such as Bruno Mars or even Lady Gaga are. Her songwriting albeit better than when she started as a kid is just about decent / at times goodish. There’s nothing particularly unique about the song structures or exciting about the instrumentation. At the end of the day I see her as a pop star who seems to have mastered the art of creating radio friendly modern music without excelling in any area, in an era where mainstream music seems to have crashed and burnt.
I’ll still try to give some of this playlist a go at some point.
Listen to the entire "folklore" album, which is as stripped down as she gets. It doesn't have that big dance party pop sound. Then do the playlist.
#93 "Better Man" (From The Vault) (2021)
So I had this song by Little Big Town on my playlist for years and was perplexed when I heard it on the re-recording of the Red album. Why is Taylor Swift releasing covers of other artists' work? Then I paid attention to the text:
- 4 AM
- In the middle of the night
- Like the back of my hand
Those are the most Taylor Swift lyrics imaginable. Annoying that I never connected the dots. She wrote it for Red back in 2012 but it didn't make the cut and she passed it on to LBT, who had big success with it in the country sphere. Speaks volumes of her talents when she can release an album with 19 tracks and a song like this somehow isn't good enough to feature.
Who did it better? LBT or Taylor? I’ll have to say our girl. Her storytelling skills are just so good.
So I had this song by Little Big Town on my playlist for years and was perplexed when I heard it on the re-recording of the Red album. Why is Taylor Swift releasing covers of other artists' work? Then I paid attention to the text:
- 4 AM
- In the middle of the night
- Like the back of my hand
Those are the most Taylor Swift lyrics imaginable. Annoying that I never connected the dots. She wrote it for Red back in 2012 but it didn't make the cut and she passed it on to LBT, who had big success with it in the country sphere. Speaks volumes of her talents when she can release an album with 19 tracks and a song like this somehow isn't good enough to feature.
Who did it better? LBT or Taylor? I’ll have to say our girl. Her storytelling skills are just so good.
To think Richard Wagner was skint for most of his life whilst this bland lady has become a billionaire with pedestrian music. Ah well.
Don't do it @amolbhatia50k, it's a trap.She's shite and no amount of waffle or playlists will change that.
FFS @Wing Attack Plan R you seriously wrote this line?
The problem isn't that people are comparing her to Dylan
I'm with Pogue. I keep waiting for the punchline.
The punchline is: OK, boomer.Don't do it @amolbhatia50k, it's a trap.She's shite and no amount of waffle or playlists will change that.
FFS @Wing Attack Plan R you seriously wrote this line?
The problem isn't that people are comparing her to Dylan
I'm with Pogue. I keep waiting for the punchline.
I'm Gen X I'll have you know
Tbh, I've listened to enough of her over the years to mostly know what she's all about. Music is huge for me and she's been popular for a long time now much to my bewilderment. I definitely see an improvement and greater maturity in her writing but it's still all just really basic. And I think that's the entire point of her fame - A) palatable to the modern audience that has no concept of good mainstream music (indies / alternative are where its at now) and B) that she and her team are obviously great at marketing. I mean a 33 year old having a concert called 'Eras' is in itself amusing to say the least. It captures her gullible audience well I suppose.
I dont know any of her songs and if I listened to them accidentaly because my ears work passively I wouldnt have known it was her.
Sounds like you're a bit out of touch
in modern pop music "era" just means an album-tour cycle. So Taylor has been through 8 or so Eras and covid ruined the Lover-folkmore eras because no live shows.She's 33 but has been in the game cultivating a devoted following since 2006. She was one of the first to chat with her fans on message boards and form parasocial bonds. She has listening party's of her new albums with fans.
She's 33 which is fecking old for a female pop star yet when you go to her concerts/movie it's full of pre teens which means she's still able to create new devotees despite being in the game since the 00s. How many other acts have achieved that? If she still has this level of fame when she hits 40 then even her biggest haters will have to admit she's in the upper echelon of all time music acts.
Sounds like you're a bit out of touch
She's 33 but has been in the game cultivating a devoted following since 2006. She was one of the first to chat with her fans on message boards and form parasocial bonds. She has listening party's of her new albums with fans.
She's 33 which is fecking old for a female pop star yet when you go to her concerts/movie it's full of pre teens which means she's still able to create new devotees despite being in the game since the 00s. How many other acts have achieved that? If she still has this level of fame when she hits 40 then even her biggest haters will have to admit she's in the upper echelon of all time music acts.
8 eras? Maybe 8 marketing eras, not musical eras. Repackaging is not reinventing. That's how she still mainly attracts kids.
How many songs can a woman get out of occasionally getting the ride?
She’s incredibly talented at connecting with people, even if she is more of a walking money machine than a musician. She’s a legend pure and simple at this point. That said, I enjoy a few of her songs once in a while, very harmless! (I have no great musical pedigree though, some of the other artists I enjoy are probably worse!)
Very many it would seem.
She'd probably write you one if you asked nicely.
I’m married with three kids. She could just rebadge that “Never ever ever” song and be done with it.
With regards to ‘Acts’ sure. Musically though she’s bang average. That she’s cultivated this following of generic music lovers is her greatest feat I suppose.Sounds like you're a bit out of touch
She's 33 but has been in the game cultivating a devoted following since 2006. She was one of the first to chat with her fans on message boards and form parasocial bonds. She has listening party's of her new albums with fans.
She's 33 which is fecking old for a female pop star yet when you go to her concerts/movie it's full of pre teens which means she's still able to create new devotees despite being in the game since the 00s. How many other acts have achieved that? If she still has this level of fame when she hits 40 then even her biggest haters will have to admit she's in the upper echelon of all time music acts.
Oh good the old men and music snobs have arrived
Is 33 really old for a pop star? Madonna had Grammy winning albums at 40 and 47, Beyoncé topped the charts and won Grammys in her mid 30s as well, and that’s just two obvious names that popped into my head.
Age aside, she’a imo pretty much an American Adele with more sex appeal and less vocal talent. One dimensional artist who found her niche in writing/singing almost exclusively about love and heartbreak. Our standard for female pop stars in general, however, is down in the dumps since the early 00s, so she still stands out in that company I suppose.
Age aside, she’a imo pretty much an American Adele with more sex appeal and less vocal talent. One dimensional artist who found her niche in writing/singing almost exclusively about love and heartbreak. Our standard for female pop stars in general, however, is down in the dumps since the early 00s, so she still stands out in that company I suppose.
The discussion is so weird. People like the music because it’s good, authentic and positive. That in itself is quite rare and doesn’t come along often. I don’t believe it goes far beyond that. It’s just music that’s solid and fun to listen to.
AKA people with more data.
She's amazing at what she is, a pop artist. She's not musically innovative or groundbreaking. She has a talent and has maximised it amazingly.
Taylor Hag Out! Wait wrong thread…
Thank God, I thought the feminist man eater had her evil claws in another poor helpless man!
On that note, I like Taylor the celeb a lot more than Taylor the artist.
Edit - saw the meme. I don't think it's about telling folk not to have fun. It's about people having fun trying class it as some elite part of culture because of her popularity. It's not, it's just wide in apeal because it's safe and unchallenging.
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Swifty McVay
The funniest thing in here is that every single comment Amol has made about her music and the ups/downs can be applied to his favourite video game
Jaysus are you actually comparing Deus Ex, Outer Wilds and Witcher 3 - three of the greatest games ever made and pinnacles of their time at what they do to generic stuff like this music?The funniest thing in here is that every single comment Amol has made about her music and the ups/downs can be applied to his favourite video game
To each their own though. Some simpletons think Zelda is the greatest thing ever made.
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You know I meant Cyberpunk you toolJaysus are you actually comparing Deus Ex, Outer Wilds and Witcher 3 - three of the greatest games ever made and pinnacles of their time at what they do to generic stuff like this music?
To each their own though. Some simpletons think Zelda is the greatest thing ever made.
But fair play!
Going through a whole playlist as the kind poster earlier put in is something I’ll probably never get around to. What would you say are her 5 best pieces of music?Sounds like you're a bit out of touch
She's 33 but has been in the game cultivating a devoted following since 2006. She was one of the first to chat with her fans on message boards and form parasocial bonds. She has listening party's of her new albums with fans.
She's 33 which is fecking old for a female pop star yet when you go to her concerts/movie it's full of pre teens which means she's still able to create new devotees despite being in the game since the 00s. How many other acts have achieved that? If she still has this level of fame when she hits 40 then even her biggest haters will have to admit she's in the upper echelon of all time music acts.
As with Gaga at a piano (though obviously not on that level) her best is just her with a guitar. Even Beiber has talent like that.
The flashy pop stuff all masks the fact some of these guys are genuinely talented at what they do. I play guitar/piano myself and I consider myself more than reasonable at those, but could I go on stage in front of 50k people and entertain them? Like feck. It's easy to look past what these guys do because it's not to your taste but this isn't something genuinely manufactured from scratch like the Spice Girls, there is a hell of a lot of talent there in the first place. I respect that.
The flashy pop stuff all masks the fact some of these guys are genuinely talented at what they do. I play guitar/piano myself and I consider myself more than reasonable at those, but could I go on stage in front of 50k people and entertain them? Like feck. It's easy to look past what these guys do because it's not to your taste but this isn't something genuinely manufactured from scratch like the Spice Girls, there is a hell of a lot of talent there in the first place. I respect that.
There is no doubt she has talent. I've worked most of my working life in the music industry and what she does and has achieved is phenomenal. Objectively, her music is less amazing than her career.
I'm not sure that's just objectively though. I mean sure we can talk about far better singers, musicians, producers and all that stuff but ultimately who decides how much talent you need to be that big? And in what areas? You obviously know far more than I in this area, and have heard far more talented people who never make it, but it does take a genuine spark to do what she has. Like I said, Bieber is similar, he is all pop and show but watch the Manchester one love gig and tell me that he at least can't do it to a respectful level. That at least puts these guys above most else and speaks to perhaps why they break that level even beyond other manufactured "stars".
She can sing ok, she can play many instruments ok, she can write a decent tune...but she can also put on a very good show just by herself doing all that and then knows how to amp it up. I have a lot more respect for that level than I do people who have everything done for them. Whilst not on the level of talent someone like Gaga genuinely has, I'd say she is still far beyond most others as a whole.
Plus, you have to admit, taking back her music the way she is doing is something else. Regardless of the reasons and the money behind it, the entertainment industry all round is rotten right now and using her power to fight back even a bit is something no one else even bothers with.
Then again I recently watched Blink 182 live and it was genuinely one of the best gigs I can remember, and I've seen a hell of a lot of the best over the years, so I'm questioning myself a lot about this stuff lately