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With 14 Grammys, more than 250 songs and a whopping 118 Guinness World Records, Taylor Swift is one of her generation's most recognizable and documented musicians.
However, Taylor Swift's journey from a little girl struggling to get a break to a country star to a pop sensation hasn't been smooth by any stretch of imagination.
The pop icon was born and raised on her Christmas tree farm in Pennsylvania, where she was inspired by country music stars like Shania Twain and Faith Hill. Music was in her blood, as her grandma was a popular opera singer.
Swift started her career as a country star but slowly transitioned into one of this generation's most iconic pop singers. The transition started with Red, and her next album, 1989, was marketed as her first official pop album.
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Taylor Swift's passion for singing started in her country home in Pennsylvania
Taylor Swift had an unconventional childhood. She was raised on a Christmas tree farm in Wyomissing, Pennsylvania, with her parents, Andrea and Scott Swift, and her brother Austin.
Swift's grandmother was a popular opera singer and also hosted a TV show in Puerto Rico. In a 2019 interview with Vogue, Taylor talked about her grandmother. She recalled:
“She was always singing, either around the house, or every single Sunday she’d get up and sing in front of the entire congregation at church,"
Taylor Swift also revealed that her grandparents' love story instilled a fairytale-esque idea of love in her mind from her very early days.
Swift's grandparents were married for more than 50 years before they died almost one week apart from each other. In the interview with Vogue, she noted:
"They were still madly in love with each other in their 80s."
Inspired by juggernauts of country music like Shania Twain and Faith Hill, Taylor Swift drifted toward country music as a child.
When she was 12, a computer repairman named Ronnie Cremer taught her to play the guitar for the first time. Ronnie also helped her write her first-ever song, Lucky You.
Becoming the country queen with Fearless and Speak Now
Taylor Swift announced herself as a country singer with her sophomore album, Fearless in 2008.
Singles like Love Story and You Belong With Me peaked at #4 and #2 on Billboard's Hot 100, respectively, and made her a country sensation overnight. Fearless won several awards, including Artist of the Year at the AMAs and Album of the Year at the Grammys.
Her second country album, Speak Now, had a similar fate. It debuted at #1 on the Billboard 200 and sold more than a million copies in its opening week. Swift won multiple awards for Speak Now, including Songwriter of the Year at the BMI Awards, Entertainer of the Year at the CMAs and ACMs, and Billboard's Woman of the Year.
Moreover, Speak Now's lead single, Mean, won Best Country Song and Best Country Solo Performance at the Grammys.
Swift's transition from a country star to a pop icon
After being a predominantly country singer throughout her career, Taylor Swift worked with songwriters Shellback and Max Martin to release Red, her fourth studio album.
Red was the first album that deviated from her quintessential country music style and incorporated new genres like dubstep, rock, heartland, and pop influences.
If Red was her stepping stone to pop, 1989 cemented her position in the genre. Taylor Swift's fifth album, 1989, was released as the "first documented, official pop album."
From 1989, Shake it Off, Blank Space and Bad Blood touched the #1 spot in the US, Australia and Canada. 1989 won multiple awards and accolades, including the coveted Album of the Year at the Grammys.
Successive albums like Reputation and Lover strengthened her position as one of the generation's biggest pop stars.
Swift's eighth and ninth studio albums were Folklore and Evermore. For these albums, Taylor collaborated with Jack Antonoff, Aaron Dessner, and Bon Iver to create a concoction of alternative rock and indie folk to deviate from her signature upbeat pop albums.
Swift's latest album, The Tortured Poets Department, embraces her signature pop style. In its debut week, almost all her songs have appeared on Billboard's Hot 100, and The Tortured Poets Department is set to be another one of her signature pop albums.
