By: Anna H. and Christina M. ’22

Have you ever wanted to be a celebrity? Well, if you have, we have a great role model for you: Taylor Swift. She is one of the most famous and talented people in America, as well as the world’s highest-paid celebrity. 

Now, why is she such an incredible artist? To begin, Swift has been a relevant pop artist for nearly 13 years now, and from the start, has been an inspiration to youth and adults all around the world. More specifically, Swift has been named the third best-selling digital singles artist in the US and has sold over 32 million albums in the span of her career. Swift released her first album when she was about 16 in 2006, and each song is filled with carefully crafted lyrics with strong messages that resonate with listeners.

In addition, Taylor Swift’s music has recently become extremely inclusive to all kinds of people, and relevant to some of the prevalent issues that society faces today. For example, in her recent single, “You Need to Calm Down,” the lyrics challenge the bias society has towards the LGBTQ community. For example, in the prechorus of the song Taylor sings, “control your urges to scream about all the people you hate ‘Cause shade never made anybody less gay”. Additionally, the music video features many popular and iconic members of the community itself. 

Taylor Swift is also an incredibly kind person with a big heart, and is known to donate large quantities of money to people and charities she feels connected to. Most recently, she donated $113,000 to The Equality Project, which is a nonprofit organization in Tennessee that advocates for LGBTQ equality. She has also donated up to $50,000 to fans in need, such as those battling serious illnesses.

Taylor Swift has been a singer for a long time, and she was also a prevalent artist in our childhoods. Her music has grown as we have, making her one of our favorite artists whether we were five or fifteen.

As Annika S. ‘23 says,“I first heard Taylor Swift’s music from my older brother and from the ages of about 4-11 she was the only artist I ever listened to.  She has been such an inspiration to me and her music has been such a big part of my life that I will honestly always love it, no matter how old I get or how much different music I listen to.”

Another reason we all admire her so much is because of her significant growth as an artist. From the beginning, we all loved her pop-country songs filled with heartbreak and emotion, but she didn’t just stick to that. As she grew, she began to branch out and dip her toe into different genres. Even though she was not always receiving the most supportive feedback, she stayed strong in the face of adversity and created new, uplifting, and original music that impressed her fans. 

“I really like Taylor Swift as a musician and as a person,” states Meredith T. ’23. “She never went through a weird phase so she has consistently been a great role model for young girls and her music was such a constant part of my childhood.”

Speaking of, she has great music! She has seven studio albums, all of which have thoughtful lyrics and catchy tunes. From her older country style to her hit pop songs, Taylor Swift’s music has been a part of many of our lives, whether in their childhood or right now.

“I have always loved Taylor Swift, especially her older albums,’ agrees Avery G. ’21. “While I am less interested in her newer albums, ‘Reputation’ and ‘Lover,’ I still think she is pretty cool, and I did love her albums ‘Fearless’ and ‘Sparks Fly’- those were amazing.”