Trash her name, praise her songs or follow her work for years, and look what you made Taylor Swift do: you made her new single another nation-sweeping hit in under a week.
Taylor’s new song “Look What You Made Me Do,” broke three records and had over 30 million hits within the first few days of the song’s release. But are we shocked? No, because Taylor Swift has been a business genius and a music inspiration for years.
In 2006, Swift became a country sensation with hits like “Teardrops on my Guitar,” “Our Song,” “Tim McGraw” and my personal favorite “Picture to Burn.” I was 10 years old with the mind of an 18-year-old heart-breaker when these songs were released.
Two years later, in 2008, the hit songs “Love Story,” “Forever & Always,” and “The Best Day” were released with a similar country twang. Taylor opened up about her emotions, memories and unrealistic love stories. Her songs are catchy; they draw you in and make you wonder what else she could create based on her life.
I knew Taylor Swift was trouble when her album “Red” was released in 2012. Taylor introduced us to an electric vengeance and pop-like vibe that differed from her previous works. After “Red,” Swift released a “red lip, classic thing that you like” album titled “1989,” in 2014. This was an album that made us feel as if we were living alongside her in New York. She was not showing her country roots anymore — she keeps her fans current, and I think that’s why she remains so successful.
Since she released her new song, I have realized how much I appreciate Taylor Swift as a musician and businesswoman. From a business and public relations perspective, she is killing the game. Think about this: it is not often an artist can rebrand themselves without losing thousands of fans and sacrificing hits with each album. Taylor Swift deleted her Instagram — everything she has built up until this point. If I were to delete my Instagram and claim a “rebranding” stage of my life, I would probably be shunned and dropped faster than one of her breakup songs.
Her new song has caused a number of strong opinions. But that is just it: it doesn’t matter if you like her new hit or even Taylor herself. She can gain your attention by any song she produces because she has built a fan empire with connection and emotion. She draws you in, she gets your hits and she gets your money along with another top Billboard song.
Swift told fans in her new hit that old Taylor is dead, and I believe new Taylor is just beginning. Her most recent hit says, “But I got smarter, I got harder in the nick of time. Honey, I rose up from the dead, I do it all the time. I’ve got a list of names and yours is in red underlined. I checked it once, then I check it twice.”
Swift is out for revenge against artists such as Kanye West and Katy Perry.
Revenge-Taylor is coming. So, say goodbye to country-Taylor, pop-Taylor, boyfriend-broke-up-with-me Taylor and romance-Taylor. She has a new motive in mind, and she is going to rise to the top once again. Her new album, “Reputation,” releases Nov. 10, 2017, will sweep this nation and her enemies by storm one hit at a time.
