When Bob Dylan and the Beatles broke through in the Sixties, they paved the way for generations of artists to write their own songs.
But by the early 2000s, the charts had been largely reclaimed by pro songwriters and svengali producers — until a young, putatively country artist named Taylor Swift came along.
As Swift rapidly moved toward pop stardom, guitar always in hand, she started an industry-wide movement toward artists — especially young women — writing about their own lives again.
Trending Stories In the episode, we break down Sheffield’s book and go deep into Swift’s enormous influence on pop, which also includes helping bring back “song-ass songs” — music that can be performed acoustically without depending on production.
), ponder rumors that Swift will release the “Taylor’s Versions” of Reputation and her self-titled debut on the same day, go inside Swift and Harry Styles’ songs about each other, and much more.
Certain lessons must be repeatedly learned. The Beatles and Bob Dylan’s success in the 1960s opened the door for subsequent generations of musicians to compose their own music. However, by the early 2000s, professional songwriters and Vengali producers had largely taken back the charts. That is, until Taylor Swift, a young, ostensibly country artist, appeared on the scene.
Swift began an industry-wide movement to encourage artists, particularly young women, to write about their own lives once more as she quickly rose to pop stardom while carrying a guitar at all times. Rob Sheffield, author of Heartbreak is the National Anthem: How Taylor Swift Reinvented Pop Music, states in the most recent episode of Rolling Stone Music Now that “when we look at what’s at the top in 2024, we see these women who don’t sound anything like Taylor and don’t sound like each other, but they’re all, in different ways, taking off from the territory that she opened up.”. Press play above to listen to the entire episode, or click here for the podcast provider of your choice. You can also listen on Apple Podcasts or Spotify.
Stories that are trending.
We dissect Sheffield’s book in this episode and explore Swift’s immense impact on pop, which includes her role in reviving “song-ass songs”—music that can be played acoustically without the need for production. Along with host Brian Hiatt and Brittany Spanos, we discuss Swift’s first single selections (why did she pick “Me!” from Lover?), speculate that Swift will release her self-titled debut and “Taylor’s Versions” of Reputation on the same day, dig into Swift and Harry Styles’ songs about one another, and much more.
