Taylor Swift, The #65 Artist of the Rock Era, Part Two

 

(Continued from Part One above)

 

Swift wrote two songs for "The Hunger Games" Soundtrack, including "Safe & Sound", which won the Grammy for Best Song Written for Visual Media and was nominated for a Golden Globe Award for Best Original Song.

Vogue magazine named Swift an Icon of American Style in 2011.

 

In 2012, Swift released "We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together", the lead single from the album Red, which became her first career #1 song in the U.S. and also rose to #1 in Canada and sold over six million copies.  It was nominated for Record of the Year at the Grammys and World's Best Song and World's Best Video at the World Music Awards, was honored as Most-Performed Song by ASCAP and was nominated for Favorite Song at the People's Choice Awards.

Taylor also earned World Music Award nominations for World's Best Female Artist, World's Best Album, World's Best Entertainer of the Year and World's Best Live Act.  

 

On Red, Swift moved deftly from style to style.  The album debuted at #1 in the United States and topped album charts in the U.K., Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and Ireland and was another album to sell over one million copies in its first week, making Swift the first female to have two such albums.  The million-seller "Begin Again" landed at #7, #4 in Canada.

 

Swift grossed over $150 million for the Red tour.  "I Knew You Were Trouble" was a multi-continental #2 smash (#2 in the U.S., the U.K. and Canada) and won the MTV Video Music Award for Best Female Video (also nominated for Video of the Year).  The single has now sold seven million copies and also earned the ASCAP Award for Most-Performed Song.

 

Taylor had another big night at the American Music Awards, winning Artist of the Year and Favorite Pop/Rock Female Artist among four awards while Red was nominated for Favorite Pop (Rock) album.  The title song peaked at #5 in Canada and #6 in the U.S.  It has now topped two million in sales.

 

Swift came home with eight trophies at the Billboard Music Awards, including Top Billboard 200 Album and Top Digital Songs Artist.  Incredibly simple and personal, but the lyrics hit home with depth to millions.  Here is the great track "All Too Well".

 

Red has sold over eight million copies around the world since its release.  Taylor was nominated for four Grammy Awards including Album of the Year.  This is another outstanding song on Red--"State Of Grace".

 

"Sad Beautiful Tragic" is another masterpiece on this amazing album.  It is among the best of The Top Unknown/Underrated Songs of the Rock Era*.

 Another top track is "The Lucky One".

Swift's duet with Jack Antonoff ("Sweeter Than Fiction" for the "One Chance" Soundtrack) was nominated for Best Original Song at the Golden Globes.  Swift did the voice for Audrey in the animated movie The Lorax and had roles in the sitcom New Girl in 2013 and the movie The Giver in 2014.

 

Swift moved to New York City to record her next album, 1989, which was released in 2014.  The lead single, "Shake It Off", is one of her signature songs and a worldwide smash--#1 in the U.S., Canada, Australia and New Zealand, #2 in the United Kingdom, #3 in Ireland, #5 in Germany and #6 in France.  The single has now sold over five million copies and earned Taylor a People's Choice Award for Favorite Song while Swift won awards for Favorite Pop Artist and Favorite Female Artist.

 

The album became her third straight to achieve over one million in sales in its opening week, making Taylor the first artist in history to reach that mark with three albums.  1989 roared to #1 on album charts in the U.S., the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New Zealand and Ireland and was a Top 10 album everywhere in the world.  The second single, "Blank Space", hit #1 in the U.S., Canada, and Australia and has sold over four million copies, also taking MTV Video Music Awards for Best Pop Video and Best Female Video.

Taylor was #1 on People magazine's best-dressed list in 2014.    

1989 has now sold over 10 million copies, with "Style" advancing as high as #6.  

 

"Bad Blood" (with Kendrick Lamar) topped charts in the United States, Canada and Australia, has topped three million in sales, and won Video of the Year and Best Collaboration at the MTV Video Music Awards.  It also received Most-Performed Song honors from ASCAP and was nominated for Favorite Song at the People's Choice Awards.  Swift made it two years in a row at the latter show when she won Favorite Pop Artist and Favorite Female Artist.

 

Swift once again dominated with Billboard Music Awards with eight trophies, including Top Artist, Top Billboard 200 Artist, Top Female Artist, Top Hot 100 Artist, Top Billboard 200 Album, Top Digital Songs Artist and a special Billboard Chart Achievement Award voted by fans.  The single "Wildest Dreams" floated to #3 in Australia, #4 in Canada and #5 in the United States.

Swift's tour to promote the album was the highest-grossing of the year with over $250 million in revenue.  Taylor won Grammys for Album of the Year (becoming the first woman and fifth artist to win the award twice), Best Pop Vocal Album, and Best Music Video (for "Bad Blood" and was nominated for Record of the Year, Song of the Year and Best Pop Solo Performance (for "Blank Space) and Best Pop Duo/Group Performance (for "Bad Blood" and was named Billboard's Woman of the Year, becoming the first artist to receive that award twice.

She received the inaugural Dick Clark Award for Excellence at the American Music Awards while also winning Favorite Adult Contemporary Artist, Song of the Year (for "Blank Space") and Favorite Pop (Rock) Album and being nominated for Artist of the Year and Favorite Pop (Rock) Female Artist and was #1 on Forbes magazine's list of the 100 highest-paid celebrities with $170 million.

Be sure to catch Part Three of Taylor Swift's amazing domination of this century bringing us to the current time.