California Lutheran University's Student Newspaper Since 1961

The Echo

California Lutheran University's Student Newspaper Since 1961

The Echo

California Lutheran University's Student Newspaper Since 1961

The Echo

Just let Taylor Swift make her music

There are very few people in this day and age that do not know who Taylor Swift is or have not heard one of her songs. Her fan base has been growing since her first self-titled album that came out in 2006. That fan base continued to grow and evolve with Swift until her most recent album โ€œ1989.โ€

As Swift has grown over the past eight years, her music has been continually reflective of her maturity and confidence. She has officially moved away from the country genre and has become a pop sensation, but more than anything, Swift has finally figured out who she is and how to best communicate that through her music.

โ€œI think that she could have stayed [in country] but I think that she is having more fun in [the pop] genre,โ€ said California Lutheran university senior Kat McConnell, a Taylor Swift fan.

Since her second album, โ€œFearless,โ€ Swift has been torn between two musical worlds: country and pop. For most of that time, country claimed her as their own, as Blake Shelton once said on an episode of โ€œThe Voice.โ€

Growing up in Nashville, it seemed only natural that Swift would have a more country sound. From her past few albums, however, it has become more and more clear that she is more of a pop artist and that she tells her story the best when accompanied by a contemporary beat, though some may disagree.

โ€œI listen to her first album. I prefer her country sound,โ€ said Cal Lutheran senior and fan of older Swift music, Jennifer Robinson.

Swift has been known since her first album as a good story-teller with her music. Still, this has not stopped her from including more dance-y and silly songs on her albums, such as โ€œShake It Off,โ€ on her newest album.

โ€œI feel like this album is her making fun of herself,โ€ said senior Sarah Day, a Swift fan since 2008. โ€œShe has the song โ€˜Shake It Off,โ€™ which is literally just her making fun of people who make fun of her.โ€

According to USAToday, โ€œ1989โ€ sold 1.287 million albums in its first week on the shelves and online, making it the first platinum record of the year. It seems that Swiftโ€™s fan base will continue to grow and only become more loyal the further she moves into the pop genre. While this may be because she has had eight years in the industry to gain fans, I would be willing to bet it mostly has to do with the fact that pop music reaches a wider audience than country typically does.

โ€œPop is more of a fan base,โ€ said junior Oliver Thornton, who works at Atlantic Records. โ€œPop is what is being played on every radio station.โ€

Swift has been criticized for years about her music and her personal life which she does a great job of poking fun at in her new album and, honestly, people need to give her a break and give her a shot. Her lyrics tell great stories and she has really evolved more than she had in any other of her albums.

Her new album โ€œ1989โ€ is great. In fact itโ€™s probably her best. Her reputation with the media has come to overshadow her talent as a story-teller and as a role model. I say itโ€™s time to move on from the politics and get back to the music.

 

Sydney Dawn

Published November 19, 2014

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