Category Archives: Taylor Swift

Taylor Swift became one of country-pop’s brightest (and youngest) faces in 2006, when the 16-year-old singer released her first record. Although new to the American public, Swift had been playing since early childhood, taking inspiration and encouragement from her opera-singing grandmother. She sang “The Star-Spangled Banner” before a Philadelphia 76ers game at the age of 11; the following year, she began practicing her guitar skills for several hours each day, only stopping when her fingers started to bleed. Swift’s parents realized their child’s dedication and began making regular visits to Nashville, TN, where Swift would perform casually and meet with songwriters in the area. The family then decided to move from their native Pennsylvania to an outlying Nashville suburb, which accelerated Swift’s career.

While performing at the intimate Bluebird Cafe in Nashville, Swift caught the eye of songs industry veteran Scott Borchetta, who signed her to his newly formed label. Swift joined the roster at Big Machine Records and released her debut single, “Tim McGraw,” in August 2006. The song drew upon her experience as a lovelorn high-school student, a theme that Swift revisited throughout her self-titled debut album. issued in late 2008, Taylor Swift catapulted the young songwriter to stardom, spawning a handful of hits (five consecutive Top Ten singles, a new record for a female solo artist) during earning multi-platinum sales. Swift also received a Grammy nomination for Best New Artist, an award she ultimately lost to Amy Winehouse. Two subsequent EPs — Sounds of the Season: The Taylor Swift Holiday Collection and Beautiful Eyes — helped maintain Swift’s popularity while whetting public demand for her sophomore release, Fearless, which arrived in November 2008.

Telluride, Grammy Updates, and Taylor Swift pairs with Miley Cyrus

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Today in our Country Music Recap, Telluride becomes more than a song and a place,  The Grammys add a few more performers, and Taylor and Miley team up for “Fifteen”. Telluride is stirring a buzz in country music circles with their debut release of “Four Square Miles“. An up and comer in the industry, some sites are already pitting them against acts like Little Big Town and Lady Antebellum as the next big group! Find out more at your source for Underground Country Music! Taylor Swift and Sugarland have both confirmed that they will be performing at the 2009 Grammy Awards Sunday Feb 8th on CBS. Other superstars on the performing schedule include Kenny Chesney, Kid Rock, Carrie Underwood, Miley Cyrus, and Robert Plant with Alison Krauss. Sounds like a star-studded event to me! And speaking of Taylor and Miley, the two are rumored to be pairing up for a duet on Taylor Swifts new song “Fifteen”  during the Grammy Awards show! Stay tuned for more Country Music News from your pals at CMNB!Country Music Photo Gallery

Taylor Swift Announces Fearless Tour with Kelli Pickler

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Taylor Swift is Fearless this summer as she tours the nation on her first headline concert tour with Kelli Pickler and Gloriana Taylor Swift is flyin’ high as she gears up for her first headline tour this summer. Tickets for Taylor Swift’s Fearless Tour are already on sale with select vendors and with Taylor’s commitment to keeping tickets as low-priced as possible, starting at $20 in most cases, I’m sure they won’t last long. “Headlining my own tour is a dream come true,” Swift said in a press release announcing the tour on Friday (Jan. 30). “This way, I can play more music every night than I ever have before. Having written my own songs, they are all stories in my head, and my goal for this tour is to bring those stories to life. My favorite thing when I go to a concert is having lots of changing things to look at, so I’ve been working really hard to make this show as multi-dimensional as possible. I want to be sure that everyone has the opportunity to come see my show, so we have affordable tickets available for every date we do this year.” Stops on Taylor Swift’s Fearless tour include: Feb. 10: San Antonio, TX Mar. 1: Plant City, FL Mar. 20: Houston, TX April 23: Evansville, Ind. April 24: Jonesboro, Ark. April 25: St. Louis April 30: Charleston, S.C. May 1: Jacksonville, Fla. May 2: Biloxi, Miss. May 14: Spokane, Wash. May 15: Seattle May 16: Portland, Ore. May 17: Yakima, Wash. May 21: Phoenix May 22: Los Angeles May 23: Las Vegas May 24: San Diego May 26: Salt Lake City June 4: Enterprise, Ala. June 11: Baltimore June 12: Greensboro, N.C. June 24: Oshkosh, Wis. June 25: Caddott, Wis. July 8: Calgary, Alberta July 10: Craven, Saskatchewan July 11: Winnipeg, Manitoba July 16: Twin Lakes, Wis. July 17: Columbus, Ohio July 18: Charleston, W.Va. July 23: Cheyenne, Wyo. July 24: Rapid City, S.D. July 25: Minot, N.D. Aug. 7: Detroit Lakes, Minn. Aug. 9: Omaha, Neb. Aug. 27: New York City Aug. 28: Uncasville, Conn. Aug. 29: University Park, Pa. Aug. 30: Louisville, Ky. Sept. 4: Greenville, S.C. Sept. 5: Charlotte, N.C. Sept. 10: Lafayette, La. Sept. 11: Bossier City, La. Sept. 12: Birmingham, Ala. Sept. 25: Dallas Sept. 26: Little Rock, Ark. Sept. 27: Tulsa, Okla. Oct. 1: Cleveland Oct. 2: Grand Rapids, Mich. Oct. 3: Pittsburgh Oct. 8: Indianapolis Oct. 9: Chicago Oct. 10: Minneapolis-St. PaulCountry Music Photo Gallery

Taylor Swift Angers Fans Over LiveDaily’s Fearless Contest

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Taylor Swift fans are up in arms over a stalled fan video contest promoted at LiveDaily. Hundreds of Taylor Swift fans are upset after participating in her “Fearless” fan video contest. It seems that while the promotions for the contest cited that winners would be chosen weekly, and a grand prize winner would receive gift certificates, signed albums and exclusive meet & greets with Taylor, there is no sign of any winners. The Taylor Swift Fearless contest even states in detail on her LiveDaily page that Taylor herself will choose which talented fan will win the exciting grand prize. However comments on her YouTube channel point out that the number of video views on Taylor’s page has not changed in over 3 months, meaning that she has not even looked at any of the entries. To quote a letter I received on the matter: “461 video responses were sent with some contestants saying that they put two weeks of work into their entries… The contest held in association with LiveDaily.com was supposed to be run for four weeks starting from November 10th which means it finished Sunday December 7th although the site was still accepting entries after that date? More controversy, what if the chosen winner, if it ever happens that there is one, is one of the videos entered after the close off date?” It is understandable that an artist’s schedule can get hectic, however the takeaway impression left by this contest is that it was a cheap publicity stunt to get devoted fans to buy and promote the new album. Now those same fans have agreed to file a fraud complaint against Taylor Swift and her management team unless the terms of this contest are met. Hopefully there is a reasonable explanation for this that will help to reconcile any hard feelings created between Taylor and her fans. In the meantime, my hat’s off to the mass number of fans who are willing to hold mainstream artists accountable for the promises they make! UPDATE: It appears that in the 24 hours after this article was published, the contest page at livedaily was updated to reflect 4 finalist up for fan voting. Since there are no contest terms posted, and the contest video from Taylor has been removed, then there is no way of proving that this method of selecting a winner is different than what her statements in the video had implied (in the video it stated that weekly winners would be chosen, then SHE would choose the grand prize winner). Either way, with the wording chosen on the contest page, I can only hope that the fans’ voices were heard. “But this is a contest and someone has to win, so Team Taylor has selected their Top 4 videos for you to vote on“. Country Music Photo Gallery

Taylor Swift Talks About Her Next Album

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While Taylor Swift’s self-titled debut is still riding the number one spot on the Billboard charts, she’s already got her mind on her next album! “I look at my favorite artists and how I feel when they put out a new album, like Garth Brooks or Tim McGraw,” she told The Los Angeles Times. “It still has so many things about the reasons I love that artist, but there’s new material. I’m not going to throw anybody for a loop or try to change my sound or be edgier. I’ve aged two years, and I’ve been writing for the past two years, and I really think there won’t be any fans who feel like I’ve tried to desert who I am.” “When she writes her songs, she hears them in her head,” producer Nathan Chapman said, “and she knows where she wants the mandolin to come in, or what guitar lick should be there.” “Obviously,” she said, “creative control is the most important thing for me, or I wouldn’t have left the biggest label in Nashville for a label that didn’t have any furniture.” So on that note, we close out our week-long look at Taylor Swift, and wish her the best on her current tour with Rascal Flatts. For Taylor Swift 2008 concert tour dates, artist biographies and event details, please visit our partner site Country Music On TourCountry Music Photo Gallery

Hot Country Music Video: Taylor Swift – Our Song

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Taylor Swift has been riding high for the last year off the phenomenal success of her debut self-titled album. Breaking into the country music radio rotation with her hit single “Tim McGraw” in the fall of 2006, there certainly shouldn’t be any teardrops on her guitar. With her debut album still number one on the Billboard Country Album charts, it’s easy to see why Taylor Swift has captured the world with her voice. Taylor recently received a Grammy nomination for Best New Artist Here’s Taylor Swift with “Our Song“. Be sure to catch her at the upcoming Stagecoach Music Festival and stay tuned for details on her upcoming August concert tour! For Taylor Swift 2008 concert tour dates, artist biographies and event details, please visit our partner site Country Music On TourCountry Music Photo Gallery

Country Artist of the week – Taylor Swift

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This week we begin showcasing our artist of the week by taking a closer look at that little blonde sweetheart, Taylor Swift. We all know she’s busted through the billboard charts over the last year with songs like “Tim McGraw“, “Teardrops on my Guitar“, and of course her current hit, “Our Song“. Now here’s a few things you may not have known: Did you know that Taylor Swift was signed to her first record deal before she ever got her driving license? “I can drive in a straight line and turn,” admitted Taylor, “But I don’t like arrows and lines. And I don’t like stop signs. The whole bigger car rule definitely applies when I drive.” Taylor’s first “big time” break was when the manager of Britney Spears team caught her performance of the national anthem at a U.S. Open tournament and brought her aboard. Soon after she would find herself featured as a rising star in an Abercrombie & Fitch campaign. About that lovely mane, Taylor says: “I will never straighten my hair to impress a guy ever again.” Taylor gets her stylish cowboy boots from Liberty Boot Co. Liberty has served a lot of famous feet including Kid Rock, Hillary Duff, and Avril Lavigne. Taylors response when asked her thoughts on Sushi: “Ha! I’ve been trying so hard to like sushi.. It’s trendy. I’m trying, but it’s not going so well so far. I love Japanese food, but I’m not into sushi so far.. yet. “ Stay tuned throughout the rest of the week for more on Taylor Swift! For Taylor Swift 2008 concert tour dates, artist biographies and event details, please visit our partner site Country Music On TourCountry Music Photo Gallery

SheDaisy, Taylor Swift, Leann Rimes, Dolly Parton, Jewel – Country Ladies In the News

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SheDaisy is poised to release a Greatest Hits album Tuesday, Feb. 5, 2008. 12 tracks, including “Little Goodbye’s“, “Don’t worry bout a thing“, and “God bless the american housewife“. Talyor Swift hits week 7 at the top of the Billboard song and country charts with “Our song“, followed in second by Sugarland‘s “Stay” and has Carrie Underwood sneaking up on her, going from #19 to #12 this week with “All American Girl“. Leann Rimes is set to host the Colgate Country Showdown Finals for the second consecutive year. The national finals will be held on Thurs., Jan. 24 at Nashville’s legendary Ryman Auditorium. This legendary country music talent competition has been running now for 26 years. Past winners include Sweethearts of the Rodeo, and Dave Durham & Bull Durham. For more information about the finalists, and more about the Colgate Country Showdown, visit www.countryshowdown.com. Dolly Parton will play this year’s SXSW music fest in Austin in March. The South By Southwest Music Conference and Festival takes over the streets and venues of Austin, Texas, March 7-16, 2008. On Friday, March 14, Parton will play at the newly refurbished Austin City Music Hall. Parton will release a new album in either late February or early March on her own label. Meanwhile her upcoming world tour is still in the planning stages. Jewel is rush-releasing her first country single, “Stronger Woman” straight to radio on February 11th. “Jewel has made a strong commitment to country radio and is in the midst of an extensive radio tour,” says Jon Loba, Vice of President of Promotion and Artist Development. “The response to ‘Stronger Woman‘ on these visits has been overwhelming. After many requests from stations to play this song early, we have decided to move up our digital release date. CD singles will still not ship until Jan. 22 because we don’t have them in house just yet!”Country Music Photo Gallery

Taylor Swift is all over the charts

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Taylor Swift is the darling of the Billboard country charts this last reporting period before Christmas. Her single, “Our Song,” holds at No. 1 for the second week, her self-titled album moves back to the No. 2 spot in its 60th week out and four selections from her Christmas album, Sounds of the Season, are twinkling on the lower branches of the song chart. The week’s highest charting new song is the Garth Brooks–Huey Lewis romp, “Workin’ for a Livin‘,” which enters at No. 50. That’s a worthy leap but pale in comparison to Brooks‘ “More Than a Memory,” the first single from his current album, which debuted at No. 1. The Eagles continue their long run at the summit of the albums chart with Long Road Out of Eden. According to the latest Nielsen Soundscan measurement, that collection has sold more than 2.2 million copies in just seven weeks. There are no new albums this week, but three former chart dwellers have returned to the list: Rodney Carrington‘s King of the Mountain (No. 70), Larry the Cable Guy‘s Morning Constitutions (No. 71) and the multi-artist Original American Classics: Country Greats (No. 74). In addition to the Brooks-Lewis duet, there are two new songs: Sugarland‘s “Winter Wonderland” (No. 58) and Swift’s “White Christmas” (No. 59). Carrie Underwood‘s Carnival Ride, Brooks‘ The Ultimate Hits and Rascal Flatts‘ Still Feels Good round out the Top 5 albums in that order. The remaining Top 5 songs, also in descending order, are Josh Turner‘s “Firecracker,” George Strait‘s “How ‘Bout Them Cowgirls,” Montgomery Gentry‘s “What Do Ya Think About That” and Sugarland’s “Stay.” Kenny Chesney’s hard-charging “Shiftwork” barrels from No. 34 to No. 25. Now it’s back to the mall. ~Courtesy of CMT.com Country Music Photo Gallery