With the recent re-release of 1989, Swift has become the most-streamed artist on Spotify worldwide, making her by far the most popular artist in music today. She has transformed herself into a modern music icon with the Taylor Swift: The Era’s Tour film surpassing Barbie with box office ticket sales in its first week.
Taylor Swift’s influence on the music industry is undeniable.
The Beatles are arguably the most well-known band to ever exist. Everyone has at least heard of The Beatles or have listened to one of their songs such as “Yesterday” or “All you need is love.” The band, despite being inactive since 1970 and suffering the loss of two members, released their last song over the weekend, titled “Now and Then.” Featuring all of the four original Beatles, making this song a monumental one for not only McCartney and Ringo Star themselves, but also Beatles fans old and new.
THE BEATLES AND BEATLEMANIA:
Picture this: we are in Liverpool in the 1960’s and you see four ambitious boys playing at a local bar. Those boys being: Paul McCartney, John Lennon, Ringo Starr, and George Harrison — that soon were to be known as The Beatles.
With their TV performance on The Ed Sullivan Show, Beatlemania began. The world of pop music fell for them, records went straight to number one, people began to follow them around on the streets, and at their live performances the screams of fans would be louder than the music itself.
The Beatles were the first example in pop music of idolisation.
The Beatles changed the music industry forever. After touring for nearly four years, they decided to solely become a studio band — which meant no more live performances. This was a controversial decision as in order to succeed, you were expected to tour. However, this non-touring choice initiated the birth of one of the most famous albums of all time: Sgt. Lonely Hearts Club Band. A concept album that consisted of varied musical sounds, musical personas, and received mixed reviews from critics.
The record’s storytelling, credited to Paul McCarteny and John Lennon, brought forth society’s attention to lyricism and the importance of human experiences. The pop album provoked an emotive reception with songs like “She’s Leaving Home,” telling a real story of a 17-year-old girl running away from home. McCartney and Lennon illustrated their genius through the lyrics they wrote together about mundane events in one’s life that people still relate to.
That is what you call true power and influence.
TAYLOR SWIFT AND SWIFTIES:
Taylor Swift shot to stardom in 2006 with a career in country music. Swift’s all-American girl-next-door persona quickly won the public’s approval. The world was shocked to find out that a 16-year-old girl could write such deep and intricate music.
Taylor Swift’s lyricism is her superpower. Her songwriting depicts her own personal heartbreaks, worries and regrets which people relate to because of the raw emotion that is present in not only the words, but also the music.
Taylor Swift knew that in order to be successful in the music industry, you must build a loyal fanbase. With this in mind, Swift worked on creating genuine connections with her fans through Myspace back in 2006 and in more modern times, has joined Instagram lives, hosts free meet and greets after shows, and invites fans over to her homes all across the world to listen to the next album before its release. She showed the people that listen to her music that she cares and in return, they stayed.
After being denied the right to own her own music, in 2020 Taylor Swift made one of the biggest and most controversial decisions in the entertainment industry…to re-record her first six studio albums. Historically, re-recordings were not met with great success. For example, Prince re-recorded his music in 1999 and commercially the public response was dire.
Swift released her first re-record Fearless (Taylor’s Version) in 2021 and not only did it break the original albums streaming and buying success, but it also broke the overall records of that year in the music industry. This success would set the tone for Swift’s future re-records.
Swift advocated for musicians to own their work, as well as protecting their rights by ensuring that streaming services pay artists a fair wage for their streamed music. Taylor Swift has not only created a voice for new or small artists fresh on the music scene but has raised awareness about the behind the scenes of record labels—changing the music industry one break-up song at a time.
BEATLEMANIA VS SWIFTIES:
The craze around Taylor Swift has often been compared to Beatlemania. Taylor Swift has now, just like The Beatles, become a household name.
Taylor Swift has broken records that only The Beatles have held before: having the longest running of three number one albums on the UK charts. This is an outstanding accomplishment, as it not only proves how timeless The Beatles were, by taking over 50 years to knock the crown off their heads but also proving how meaningful Swift’s music is.
My father would always be startled when we would be in the car and a radio journalist would compare Swift to The Beatles; he would always say to me, ‘‘remember The Beatles succeeded without the help of modern day technology,’’ and I must agree. I think it’s extraordinary what The Beatles did in the 1960’s and even though Beatlemania may have died down, it will linger on forever more.
From the second Swift stepped on that stage and people heard her enchanting lyrics, they knew she would be the biggest star to come after the rise of The Beatles.
The reason for the popularity? I will note to one thing: True and authentic lyricism. People listen to music to validate their emotions, to form a sonic world where they feel safe and can get lost in, and Taylor Swift and The Beatles provided that outlet for others.
Therefore, The Beatles and Taylor Swift will go down in history as being the most influential musicans and the best songwriters of our time.