Are You a Swifty?
I am. I think she's great.
And You?
Wow, who would have thought such a simple question would dredge up people like me.
Her songs are carefully crafted corporate based PRODUCT, and nothing more. She’s a good business woman that happens to sing a little. She doesn’t really cater to the dudes that post on here. And that might be part of the problem. |
Don't listen to her music but ton of respect. Same things were said about Sinatra, Elvis, the Beatles, etc. And why can't she have a political opinion and share her views? Like saying an audiophile should stay in their lane and not engage civically. By God Joni and Dylan have shared countless times. |
A sometimes overlooked aspect of the Swift phenomenon. She is becoming a powerful political influence. She is on video talking passionately about her views and stating she wants to be on the “right side of history “. Just like so many women whose power is dismissed, her followers are very impactful despite being ignored as a political force. |
Though I haven’t bought any of her products. I do like her music. My niece went to one of her concerts and was out of her mind with praise about how good and interactive it was, as well as legitimately lasting 3 hours. I do sometimes listen to her music on Qobuz, seems well produced and she sure can sing and dance. If I had the chance I’d go see her in concert One thing she does is give away a lot of money to worthwhile charities AND gave all her truck drivers a $100k bonus last year! |
@deep_333 + 1 |
Low IQ is political agnostic judging by the statement above. |
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Didn’t think that a clarification would be required but yes. |
@audphile1 "But it’s all a matter of taste." If that means that different people like different things, I agree. If it means that there can be no ordering, better or worse, in aesthetics, I disagree. One has to agree on criteria, of course, but once those gain some agreement, then further judgments are possible. I'm not saying there would be one final, ultimate, this goes for everyone list, but I think we can make some progress. We could agree, for example, that Bill and Ted's Great Adventure is a lesser film than Apocalypse Now. Etc. |
Thanks for this info. I don’t even know what her songs are about as I can’t make it past the 5secs of the intro. Now I feel good that I bridged that gap. |
@tylermunns + 1 |
I do have to say that I liked Taylor's "Red" better than Adele's last album - which was totally forgettable to me. And I blame Adele's huge influence on record pressing companies that caused so many other worthy vinyl albums to come out months later than they should have. I mean, I liked 19, 21, and 25. But 30 just seemed forced and way hyped. Underwhelmed. |
OK. I'm 68 years old and had no opinion about Taylor (other than a feeling that too many teenage girls were fans and how good could that be?). I bought Ryan Adams album "1989" which was his version of her album of the same name. I thought it was excellent. My wife liked it too and decided to buy some Taylor CDs--starting with "1989". Well---I can't say I would buy her albums on my own but I have to say that she has a great knack for pop melodies and is clearly a very good lyricist. The complaint of too many break up songs is legitimate but they do speak to her genuineness and vulnerability which connects especially well with girls and women. In fact, I do enjoy her albums when the wife plays them and they are very well produced and engineered. I think that might make me a Swiftie. Oh well, so be it. |
She is a talentless, mid 7, middle age bimbo media creation with low music proficiency that got her boost by having influence with a manipulatable voting block who won't show up to vote anyway. Cue the haters. Isn't this forum about musical excellence? This board makes Brittany Spears look like Beverly Sills. |
Getting back to the question "Are You a Swifty". No. I don't have anything against her, and good for her for being wildly successful. I've heard a couple of random songs on SXM radio that I thought were decent, and was surprised to find out it was Taylor. My guess is her recordings are over-processed, so the vocal is pleasant but non-descript. She does have tremendous influence however, so I hope she stays out of politics.
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I am not a fan at all. But then, I am not a fan of pretty much all forms of mainstream pop, rock, hip hop, country, etc. Not that I hate it, but even the best crafted pop songs, with creative catchy melodies and hooks, good choruses, bridges, etc., has me saying to myself, "that was a well done pop song, but now what? **WARNING**Music snobbery ahead! I want much more from the music that I listen to. The genres of music I listen to, take me on a journey emotionally, intellectually, alter my brain state, alter my perceptions. And no, no substances are required. So, while I can hear a well crafted pop song and enjoy it, music is capable of so much more. Sometimes I get asked, "but why can’t you enjoy both types of music, the fun pop songs, and the music that takes you on a journey?" And my answer is, life is too short. There is just so much incredible music to explore, and more being created on a constant basis, that why should I listen to fun pop songs, when there is so much potential to listen to music that will be so much more? |
@tylermunns I appreciate the intelligent response. Human nature wants to compare... Camaro/Mustang etc. Yes, I’m over 50 but I will listen to new(er) music so I can honestly evaluate it, the sound quality of recent recordings has been as problematic as the content. In regard to Taylor Swift I have listened to about 50 songs(>20%) multiple times out of 243? songs released. Her level of musicianship/vocals and writing skill/subject matter just does not meet my standards/interest to get a place on my limited(space) vinyl or CD shelf. FWIW "Lavender Haze" is my favorite Taylor Swift song. |
@dayglow My point is that instead of addressing the question, “you like Taylor Swift?”, instead of talking about the relative merits of her art, instead of talking about songwriting, performing, etc., we’re showing all of the insight and analytical acumen required to say, “sHe a LaDy. LaDy SiNg. I kNoW LaDy SiNg. I KnOw aReThA. I kNoW mAdOnNa. I KnOw aDeLe…ShE nOt LiKe tHaT oNe…sHe sOrT oF LiKe tHaT OnE…LaDy SiNg…” Further, to address your question (‘Should she be compared to Ritchie Blackmore or Ian Gillan?’ )…um…no. No she shouldn’t. That would be an inexplicable choice of comparison as far as Taylor Swift goes.
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@tylermunns What is your point? Should she be compared to Ritchie Blackmore or Ian Gillan? |
No longer my cup of tea. I liked her better when she was a "kid" doing country pop music and using a pitch shifter to stay on key. Now that she’s straight "pop", well, it doesn’t trip my trigger. But whatever. I don’t "get" opera either for the most part, but I still check it out sometimes. The same with Taylor. Last album I sat through was Red. She’s obviously filling a marketing niche and speaks to some people. Good for her. But all the "cult of personality" stuff with some of her extreme fans and our obsessed media is a turnoff. The same can be said of Elon Musk. |
It’s really sad that these comparisons are emerging here. How/why would Taylor Swift be compared to each of them? …hmmmmm…. …oh! Right! Of course! How silly of me! We’re super sexist and dirt-brained! Of course! Ugh…gross. ”SiNgEr…wOmAn…I…LiKe…wOmAn…SiNgEr…”. We apparently only see the “woman” part. So whenever an artist comes along, we go into lizard-brain-mode and only compare her artistry to other artists of the same chromosomal makeup, regardless of how dubious the musical comparison is. Sad. |
Mid 50s guy here. I think she’s great. Our adult kids have convinced me to listen critically, and I love lots of her stuff. She’s the great poet-artist of our age. She’s not Adele or Whitney Houston or Holly Cole in vocal quality. And her voice does not have the character or distinction of Jennifer Warnes or Stevie Nicks or Aretha Franklin. But her writing is deeply romantic and reminds me of falling in and out of love with my wife of 32 years all over again, including what it would have been like if we hadn’t. She’s the like Shelley or Frost or Dylan of this age. Moreover, her re-recorded stuff is really well engineered. It sounds great and you are likely to enjoy it if you can tolerate good country or adult contemporary at all. If you’re all jazz and classical it may not be for you, but then you may not be looking for the poetry of words in that instance. Give "All Too Well (10 Minute Version)" a listen. It’s deep. It’s about the universal condition of young heartache. Everyone has felt this -- I hope. You can feel her heartache and your own (current or past) heartache when she sings. A few gems from just this one track: "You told me about your past thinking your future was me." "So casually cruel in the name of being honest." "You who charmed my dad with self-effacing jokes. Sipping coffee like you’re on a late night show. But then he watched me watch the front door all night willing you to come. And he said it’s supposed to be fun . . . turning 21." "You kept me like a secret but I kept you like an oath." There are tons of other songs like this. Give her a serious try if you haven’t. Happy listening (to whatever you listen to) from a first-time poster. |
I'll only say I'm forced to listen to her in the car when my daughter asks to play her Spotify list. But it's a limited selection of Swift songs. The song structure is typical of 90% of the pop music out there. And while her musical catalog has matured and changed, as any artist whose entire career has been managed to track music trends, I don't begrudge her success. I have other women artists that I prefer who write better material and (in the paraphrased words of Morrissey) whose songs say something to me about my life. Swift and Kelce are a perfect match for each other. Two highly marketed brands that manufacture success via successful marketing. In Swift's case...coming from a very wealthy family with ties to the music industry to help her "get discovered" and in Kelce's case...having a marketing team market an okay player into a "star"
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