Taylor Swift - explain the appeal to me please?

[RoJoHen]

i thought she was hot and funny on that skit on the CMAs where they put her in Trek.

Yeah, that video was pretty hilarious.

 

[The Boy Who Cried Worf]

"You Belong With Me" has the stupidest lyrics.

"She wears short skirts. I wear T-shirts"

Here's how I interepret this line:
Nameless girl is only wearing a mini-skirt. And nothing else. Taylor Swift is only wearing a T-shirt. Presumably a long one which goes down to her knees. Is it any wonder why the guy is noticing the other girl instead?

Oh I have heard that song. I thought it was Avril Lavigne. Not my cup of tea, but I can see why a lot of young pop music fans would be into it.

 

[RoJoHen]

"You Belong With Me" has the stupidest lyrics.

"She wears short skirts. I wear T-shirts"

Here's how I interepret this line:
Nameless girl is only wearing a mini-skirt. And nothing else. Taylor Swift is only wearing a T-shirt. Presumably a long one which goes down to her knees. Is it any wonder why the guy is noticing the other girl instead?

I think you missed the whole point.

 

[23skidoo]

Bless her sweet little heart, she can NOT sing.

You actually hit the nail on the head to a large degree. Not referring to the comment about her singing - to each their own - but the fact you felt compelled to add a bit of an "aww, ain't she cute" sort of modifer to your criticism.

In the last few year it seems that 9 out of 10 teen singers or singer-wannabes at any rate have come crashing down for one reason or another. Either they self-destruct (Lohan, Britney Spears), they fall from grace (Jamie Lynn Spears), or their fans can't accept the fact that they're growing up and, frankly, acting like most teenage girls do in the 2000s (Cyrus), or their fans have trouble accepting the fact that they have grown up (Leann Rimes, the Taylor Swift of the 1990s).

Taylor Swift, on the other hand, has so far kept out of trouble. We aren't hearing about her getting arrested for DUI. She wears sexy costumes but people haven't started condemning her yet for some ill-conceived dance move on a youth awards show. She hasn't broken up any marriages yet.

Many of her appearances have really emphasized her cuteness and youth - from her classic Star Trek parody to her recent SNL stint. And, then of course, the Kanye incident cemented this image. No less than Pink - the rough-and-tumble rock singer - compared it to stomping on a puppy.

Thing is a lot of people like her because she's an antidote to the other teen stars -- at least for now. As for whether she can sing or not, frankly that's completely in the ear of the behold. Two words: Tom Waits. Two more words: Bob Dylan. The notion that you actually need to be able to sing to be a good singer (and no that isn't a contradiction) died years ago. For me, not being a fan of modern-day country music I'm not interested in her musically. Nor am I huge fan otherwise (except I agree she's damn cute). I do hope she manages to avoid falling into the same traps the others have fallen into.

Alex

 

[The Wormhole]

"You Belong With Me" has the stupidest lyrics.

"She wears short skirts. I wear T-shirts"

Here's how I interepret this line:
Nameless girl is only wearing a mini-skirt. And nothing else. Taylor Swift is only wearing a T-shirt. Presumably a long one which goes down to her knees. Is it any wonder why the guy is noticing the other girl instead?

I think you missed the whole point.

What can I say? That very thought goes through my head every time I hear that song.

 

[Nerys Myk]

I hate the new one. Everything about it bothers me - moping teenage girl mooning over boy too stupid or shallow to know she's better for him than his current girlfriend. "You belong with me-hee-hee!!!!" :angry:

Well, she is a teenage girl, ya know? She's allowed to sing about that stuff.

Yeah, she feels things about stuff!


It seems she thinks Romeo and Juliet had a happy ending. I'm also pretty sure she had NO idea what being a "Scarlet Letter" means.

I like to annoy my wife by making up lyrics that reflect the actual plot of Romeo and Juliet when Swift's song is on the radio.

 

[Gil T.Azell]

Taylor Swift's appeal? In two words: she's hot.

......

Thats it!

 

[Brent]

At 20 she hasn't turned into a Brittany or a Miley yet, that alone earns her respect in my book.

 

[Locutus of Bored]

Almost every pop sensation that comes along, I end up understanding the appeal. I don't always share it, but I can usually explain it. But ultimately, I just do not understand how Taylor Swift got to be such a phenomenon.

Does anyone else agree with me? What am I missing here?

She's cute, talented, writes catchy crossover tunes and simple lyrics with themes that appeal to girls around her age as well as broader audiences, appears to be very nice and not jaded by fame, and has a good sense of humor (in some of the SNL and other comedy bits I've seen her in like the CMA Awards one IIRC where she played a Vulcan in Trek XI).

I don't know what else to say, other than I never quite understand these types of topics where people ask others to explain the appeal of or convert them to liking something they don't care for. If you don't like, don't like it. Who cares what anyone else thinks?

 

[FordSVT]

There are enough trashy, truly-no-talent hacks out there to make fun of. She's harmless, she's cute, she sings catchy songs, her music is not directly aimed at 28 year old men, for example, even if some of them like it.

Should Grammy awards perhaps be granted to performers that everyone likes? Who'd that be?

 

[sidious618]

I don't think she's cute, I think here singing sucks and I think her lyrics suck. It appears I'm not in the majority, though.

 

[CaptainCanada]

She's cute, her songs are catchy, and generally she seems authentic, which is a prized commodity in the entertainment industry (which is part of the problem with the entertainment industry, when you think about it).

 

[Brent]

I don't think she's cute,

Fail

 

[firehawk12]

Someone sent me a link to that song where she wants to date the Quarterback but she's a nerd or whatever... can't remember the name of the song. But from that perspective, I can totally see why she'd be popular with the teen girl segment. It's like a musical version of what happens in Twilight.

 

[Thestral]

Someone sent me a link to that song where she wants to date the Quarterback but she's a nerd or whatever... can't remember the name of the song. But from that perspective, I can totally see why she'd be popular with the teen girl segment. It's like a musical version of what happens in Twilight.

Except with less vampires and watching teenage girls in their sleep...

 

[exodus]

Almost every pop sensation that comes along, I end up understanding the appeal. I don't always share it, but I can usually explain it. But ultimately, I just do not understand how Taylor Swift got to be such a phenomenon.

I really don't want this to be a thread for trashing her. What I'm looking for is maybe someone who can help me get it.

I just watched an old live TV performance of hers (well, a few months old, anyway). Bless her sweet little heart, she can NOT sing. She kind of whines, sometimes on-pitch, sometimes just nearby. There's no breath training. The phrasing is, to be generous, awkward. She's not even all that engaging as a performer. You know, some people can't sing, but they can put over a song like nobody's business. Not Taylor. Not at all.

And then there's the songwriting. While there's a certain youth and innocence to her songs, the fact is that they're just poorly constructed.

As an individual, I find her fairly charming. She seems to handle her fame well, presenting herself with good grace. And I can see where the subjects of her songs would appeal to young teen girls. But the awards she's getting, the critical acclaim - I just do not understand it.

Does anyone else agree with me? What am I missing here?

After the slut trash train wreak that was Britney Spears, people feel safer with the sweet innocence of Taylor Swift.

However, I don't think she would have gotten so much press and become a house hold name if Kanye West hadn't made an ass of himself by upstaging her. It was the perfect chance for her label to play up "sweet & innocent" card.

 

[Davros]

Taylor Swift's appeal? In two words: she's hot.

QFT

 

[exodus]

Taylor Swift's appeal? In two words: she's hot.

QFT

Taylor Swift is cute

Selma Hayek is hot.

 

[FordSVT]

Taylor Swift's appeal? In two words: she's hot.

QFT

Taylor Swift is cute

Selma Hayek is hot.

QFMFT

 

[Othello]

Bless her sweet little heart, she can NOT sing.

You actually hit the nail on the head to a large degree. Not referring to the comment about her singing - to each their own - but the fact you felt compelled to add a bit of an "aww, ain't she cute" sort of modifer to your criticism.

In the last few year it seems that 9 out of 10 teen singers or singer-wannabes at any rate have come crashing down for one reason or another. Either they self-destruct (Lohan, Britney Spears), they fall from grace (Jamie Lynn Spears), or their fans can't accept the fact that they're growing up and, frankly, acting like most teenage girls do in the 2000s (Cyrus), or their fans have trouble accepting the fact that they have grown up (Leann Rimes, the Taylor Swift of the 1990s).

Taylor Swift, on the other hand, has so far kept out of trouble. We aren't hearing about her getting arrested for DUI. She wears sexy costumes but people haven't started condemning her yet for some ill-conceived dance move on a youth awards show. She hasn't broken up any marriages yet.

Many of her appearances have really emphasized her cuteness and youth - from her classic Star Trek parody to her recent SNL stint. And, then of course, the Kanye incident cemented this image. No less than Pink - the rough-and-tumble rock singer - compared it to stomping on a puppy.

Thing is a lot of people like her because she's an antidote to the other teen stars -- at least for now. As for whether she can sing or not, frankly that's completely in the ear of the behold. Two words: Tom Waits. Two more words: Bob Dylan. The notion that you actually need to be able to sing to be a good singer (and no that isn't a contradiction) died years ago. For me, not being a fan of modern-day country music I'm not interested in her musically. Nor am I huge fan otherwise (except I agree she's damn cute). I do hope she manages to avoid falling into the same traps the others have fallen into.

Alex

Excellent post! Bravo!!