Taylor Swift In the history of the music industry, there have been very few artists like Taylor Swift. It is extremely rare to find someone with several musical talents as well as an exceptional songwriting gift. From growing up on a Christmas tree farm in Pennsylvania to becoming one of the world’s most famous country singers, Taylor Swift has impacted the lives of many different types of people around the globe. With her parents Scott and Andrea, as well as her younger brother Austin, Swift grew up in the small Pennsylvanian town of Wyomissing. Before her interest in country music, Swift participated in a few children’s musical theater productions (Danielsen 1). One of her mentors noticed her special talent and suggested that Swift should consider pursuing a music career. Swift took up the suggestion and started getting involved with local competitions and open-mike gigs. By the age of 12, Swift began to learn the guitar on her own as well as beginning to write some of her own songs. Swift’s parents recognized Taylor’s passion for country music and decided to bring their daughter to Nashville to perform at small gigs, hoping to attract someone’s attention. Fortunately record label holder Scott Borchetta was hooked when he saw Swift perform one night at the Bluebird Cafe. At the age of 15, Taylor Swift was signed to Borchetta’s Big Machine Records . This was just the beginning of her successful music career (“Taylor Swift” 1). In August 2006, Swift released her first official single “Tim McGraw.” Later that year she went on to release her debut album entitled Taylor Swift. The album eventually hit the top of the charts and earned Swift her first platinum record with over 2 million copies sold (Danielsen 1). Swift earned a new record for female solo artists as she charted five of her songs as Top Ten singles. Her popularity grew as Swift was nominated for the Best New Artist Grammy in 2007. With the release of her Christmas EP, Swift was becoming a worldwide-known artist. According to CMT, “Swift's debut record made her a queen in the country world, but 2008's Fearless positioned her as the year's biggest star of any genre” (1). Swift’s second album, Fearless, released in the fall of 2008, earning a gold status on the first week of sales. Soon enough, the sophomore album hit it’s multi-platinum status. Fearless brought more success for Swift as well. Her video for “You Belong with Me” allowed Swift to become the first country music artist to win a MTV Video Music Award (Danielsen 1). Fearless became the best-selling album of the year in the United States with selling over six million copies by the end of 2009 (“Taylor Swift” 1). Taylor Swift worked hard for the next two years after Fearless. From tours to award shows, Swift was gaining fame daily. In October 2010, Swift released her highly anticipated third record, Speak Now. Not only did the album sell over a million copies the first week, it also debuted at the number one spot on the Billboard’s charts (Danielsen 1). With the positive feedback, Swift started her world tour in February 2011. She visited multiple countries around the world and sold out all 98 shows (“Taylor Swift” 1). There is no question that Swift has had a successful music career, but this is only the beginning. The thriving country artist is set to release her fourth album, Red, on October 22. Taylor Swift’s hard work and dedication helped her achieve her childhood dreams and she continues doing what she loves today. Looking back on Swift’s progress over the last several years, there is no doubt she will have many more years full of great accomplishments.

Works Cited
Danielsen, Khamrie. "Mini Biography." IMDb. IMDb.com, Inc., 2012. Web. 02 Oct. 2012. .
"Taylor Swift Biography." CMT: Country Music Television. 2012. Web. 02 Oct. 2012. .