Taylor Swift’s new album, Speak Now, went platinum in Australia after less than a month after its release. Her freshman and sophomore albums went 4X platinum and 6X platinum, respectively. Why is she so popular? Her fans are not only drawn to her music, they are also deeply respectful of the artist herself.
“She has a better overall image than other artists,” commented Junior Grace Lu.
Taylor Swift doesn’t auto-tune her voice. She doesn’t pole-dance on stage. She doesn’t use loud, catchy beats to cover up the lack of quality in a song. She keeps it clean and she keeps it real, unlike other teen sensations. “Miley [Cyrus] doesn’t present herself well,” said Lu. Where Cyrus forces her “sexual exploration” down her fans’ throats and Justin Beiber takes waves of criticism for singing about subjects beyond his understanding, Swift manages to keep it classy.
This is not to say that she keeps her private life private. “If you listen to my album, it’s like reading my diary,” said Swift in an interview with the New York Times. Many of her peers sing whatever is put in front of them, but Swift collaborates on every piece of music she releases. She uses the medium in the way it was meant to be – by pouring herself into her music. As a result, there’s less of her to spill out over the tabloids and gossip blogs. What goes into her music is self-empowering. Her songs aren’t about getting drunk at a party or about her sex life, but instead focus on more tame and respectable activities. Even when she sings about a breakup, she presents it in a positive manner, by rising above the problem instead of tearing her ex-boyfriend down.
Her lyrics are not the only thing that appeal to her listeners. Her music is easy to listen to because it doesn’t force her fans to choose between two genres. Her balance between pop and country allows the fans to be pleasantly fickle. She makes no claim to be “all country” or “completely pop.” Her audience is young, and is constantly floating between styles of music, so Swift’s hybridization of two genres is quite appealing to them.
The aspects of Taylor Swift that set her apart from other artists of the present make her an excellent role model. Her positive and wholesome outlook on the world and keen ability to avoid scandal puts her ahead of the pack. Even when Kanye West informed the entire world on live television that Beyoncé had the best video of all time and that Taylor Swift didn’t deserve the MTV award the she had received, Swift showed her fans that it’s far more impressive to take the high road and put criticism behind you. Truly, she is a role model for people of all ages.
It is true that she does not cover up the lack of quality in her songs.
Even though Taylor Swift’s songs are very simplistic, I wholeheartedly agree that she is a wonderful role models for young girls.
I much prefer her over Miley Cyrus who is a horrible role model because she has become the epitome of child star gone wild.