Taylor Swift鈥檚 is here, the album that ushered in the first Peak Swift era 鈥� revisited at the height of her massive pop culture dominance.
Released in 2014 and named for her birth year, the original 鈥�1989鈥� signified a sonic rebirth. Swift had shed the Nashville country roots of her first four studio albums and announced herself a full-fledged pop superstar.
鈥�1989 (Taylor鈥檚 Version),鈥� out Friday, takes that version of Swift 鈥� then in her mid-20s, living in New York, prepared to take on the world with an arsenal of 鈥�80s synth sounds and a new producer named 鈥� and includes five unreleased 鈥渧ault鈥� tracks that deliver more clues about the artist she was then.
Previous have been more than conventional rerecordings, arriving with new music, Easter eggs and visuals that deepen understanding of her work. The project 鈥� the fourth of six rereleases 鈥� was instigated by music manager Scooter Braun鈥檚 purchase and sale of her early catalog and represents Swift鈥檚 effort to control her own songs and how they鈥檙e used.
Her return to 鈥�1989鈥� 鈥� the album where she began to confront media portrayals of herself and in song 鈥� comes at another Swift popularity crescendo but also during a 2010s nostalgia (Yes, it鈥檚 only 2023. Yes, the nostalgia is real).
Here are some key things to consider as 鈥�1989鈥� propels the New Peak Swift era forward:
OPENING THE VAULT
Listeners will dive deep into the vault tracks for clues into Swift鈥檚 mind around 2014. 鈥淪lut!鈥� may recall her contentious relationship with the press, which fixated on her alleged romantic relationships and the songs she鈥檇 write once they ended.
They鈥檒l find connections to 鈥淥ut of the Woods鈥� on 鈥淚s It Over Now?鈥� in the lyrics 鈥渨hen you lost control / red blood, white snow.鈥� They鈥檒l wonder who made her pretend to like acid rock and mega yachts on 鈥淣ow That We Don鈥檛 Talk.鈥� But more insight will be found in thinking about where Swift was at the time, what came next, and how that mirrors the current moment.
Swift dominated headlines and award show crowd shots in 2014, reaching a point of oversaturation, and leading to her retreat from the public eye prior to the release of her undercelebrated revenge record, With on NFL broadcasts due to her relationship with Kansas City Chiefs star Travis Kelce, could history repeat itself?
Brittany Spanos, senior writer at Rolling Stone, puts it simply: 鈥淧eople just get easily sick of anyone who鈥檚 super famous. And I think that we haven鈥檛 had a lot of monocultural kind of celeb moments like this in a minute,鈥� she says of Swift in 2023.
Rebecca Jennings, a senior correspondent at Vox covering social platforms and the creator economy, sees a connection between the 2014 eras as being 鈥減ost-recession鈥� and 2023 being 鈥減ost-COVID,鈥� a time where Swift succeeds because there鈥檚 a sort of cultural 鈥渂ouncing back vibe,鈥� a time where people want celebratory music.
In 2014, that was Swift finding her pop sound with 鈥�1989.鈥�
In 2023, it鈥檚 becoming the most successful version of herself, and rereleasing 鈥�1989 鈥� while on the top of her game.
FROM COUNTRY TO POP: A TRANSITIONAL ALBUM
鈥淚t was a huge risk for her to move completely outside of country 鈥� there鈥檚 no country elements on this album whatsoever,鈥� says Spanos, who also teaches a course on Swift at New York University鈥檚 Clive Davis Institute. She says Swift鈥檚 penchant for pop songwriting is evidenced all the way back on her 2008 sophomore release 鈥淔earless鈥� in tracks like 鈥淟ove Story,鈥� but 鈥�1989鈥� is 鈥渉er first official, full-length pop project.鈥�
However, more so than a declarative move into pop, Spanos views 鈥�1989鈥� as 鈥渕ore in the lineage of the kind of transitional albums teen stars tend to make when they move into adulthood,鈥� comparing it to Janet Jackson鈥檚 鈥淐ontrol鈥� and Christina Aguilera鈥檚 鈥淪tripped.鈥� 鈥�1989鈥� is the album where Swift鈥檚 divorced herself from adolescence. She鈥檚 moved to NYC; she鈥檚 working with new people; she鈥檚 making synth pop.
Rachel Brodsky, a music and culture writer who has been covering Swift for well over a decade, points out that Swift鈥檚 sonic experimentations were earned 鈥� and that she very well might be one of the final pop superstars who couldn鈥檛 come out of the gate playing with genre the way listeners are accustomed to now.
鈥淪he came up in the shadow of the Chicks, where she was told under certain circumstances by her team, like, 鈥橸ou don鈥檛 want to be the Chicks,鈥� Brodsky says of the country music group who were of their audience.
The Chicks, acts like Shania Twain and LeAnn Rimes cracked open the door for Swift to burst open on 鈥�1989,鈥� she says. And not just as a pop musician, but as someone bucking convention 鈥� something Brodsky says artists like Kacey Musgraves, Maren Morris and even Olivia Rodrigo have followed.
ENGAGING WITH HER OWN CELEBRITY
By the time 鈥�1989鈥� rolled around, Swift was no longer writing high school romances and fairytale narratives.
She鈥檇 begun engaging with her celebrity reality 鈥� inviting Beyonc茅 and Jay-Z to her birthday party, hanging out with models and other very famous people in a group labeled 鈥渢he Squad鈥� in the media.
She was also writing songs like 鈥溾�橞ad Blood,鈥� which is about her feud with Katy Perry,鈥� says Spanos, a decisive move away from the kind of humility and 鈥渉ometown girl鈥� image associated with 鈥渃ountry Taylor.鈥� That meant occupying more space in the pop landscape: reconciling with Kanye West after the infamous 2009 VMAs moment, starring alongside Drake in a commercial, getting Kendrick Lamar on a remix, so on and so forth.
In 2023, Swift is more famous now than she was then, and she鈥檚 still engaging with her celebrity in a very public way.
鈥�1989 (TAYLOR鈥橲 VERSION)鈥� PLAYS INTO FONDNESS FOR 2014
Jennings believes people are nostalgic for the year 2014 and always will be 鈥� because it was one of the last online periods before the hyper-commodification of social media 鈥� which makes 2023 the ideal time for revisiting 鈥�1989.鈥�
There were blogs, and Tumblr, and our internet lives were less defined by algorithms. 鈥淚t is looked at as this Edenic time of innocence and purity,鈥� she says. At the time, there was a kind of monoculture that leans itself to nostalgia in 2023, she says 鈥� everyone receiving the same information on the same topics at the same time, Taylor Swift鈥檚 鈥�1989鈥� era included 鈥� as opposed to the current influencer-based model.
(It鈥檚 worth noting that Swift herself was very active on Tumblr, using the social media platform to find fans to invite to private listening sessions held in her home.)
Additionally, in the last few months, Swift has been seen dining with very famous friends like Blake Lively, Sophie Turner and Selena Gomez, a return to the language of her 鈥淪quad.鈥� 鈥淏y parading out many of the same friends she had during that era that she was also parading about, she鈥檚 playing into this nostalgia element,鈥� argues Jennings.
At the time, theories swirled around Swift鈥檚 assumed romantic relationships 鈥� many believe the song 鈥淪tyle鈥� is about her short relationship with Harry Styles 鈥� and in 2023, her latest assumed romance has become a top story again.
鈥淚t鈥檚 almost like she鈥檚 method promoting,鈥� Spanos jokes. 鈥淪he鈥檚 leaning into it again.鈥� But there鈥檚 a huge difference in the kind of treatment she鈥檚 receiving from the public this time around. The press appears to be rooting for her relationship, she says, instead of thinking about the breakup songs it might inspire, warning her male partners and turning Swift into the butt of the joke 鈥� as the media was doing in 2014.
鈥淭here鈥檚 a little bit less of that level of misogyny,鈥� Spanos says.
So what鈥檚 next for Swift?
The continuation of her Eras tour, which is set to resume on November 9th in Buenos Aires, Argentina. And, of course, two more 鈥淭aylor鈥檚 Version鈥� albums.
Maria Sherman, The Associated Press
