Taylor Swift facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Taylor Swift
Swift in 2023
Born	Taylor Alison Swift (1989-12-13) December 13, 1989 (age 35) West Reading, Pennsylvania, US
Occupation	Singer-songwriter record producer actress director
Years active	2003–present
Organization	Taylor Swift Productions
Works	Albums singles songs videos performances
Relatives	Austin Swift (brother) Marjorie Finlay (grandmother)
Awards	Full list
Musical career
Origin	Nashville, Tennessee, US
Genres	Pop country folk rock
Instruments	Vocals guitar piano banjo ukulele
Labels	Republic Big Machine
Signature

Taylor Alison Swift (born December 13, 1989) is an American singer-songwriter. She is famous for writing songs about her own life experiences. Swift is one of the best-selling musicians of all time. She is also the highest-grossing touring artist and the wealthiest female musician. She is the first billionaire to earn most of her money from music.

Swift started her career as a country singer. She signed with Big Machine Records in 2005. Her first albums, Taylor Swift (2006) and Fearless (2008), were very successful. Her songs "Teardrops on My Guitar", "Love Story", and "You Belong with Me" were popular on both country and pop radio. She added rock sounds to Speak Now (2010) and electronic sounds to Red (2012).

With her album 1989 (2014), Swift changed her image from a country artist to a pop star. After facing a lot of media attention, she released the album Reputation (2017). These albums included number-one hits like "We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together", "Shake It Off", "Blank Space", and "Look What You Made Me Do".

In 2018, Swift moved to Republic Records. She released the pop album Lover (2019). She also began to re-record her first six albums, calling them Taylor's Version. This was because of a disagreement over the ownership of her early music. In 2020, she surprised fans with two indie folk albums, Folklore and Evermore. She continued to explore pop music with Midnights (2022) and The Tortured Poets Department (2024).

Swift has had many number-one songs, including "Cardigan", "Anti-Hero", and "Fortnight". She has had seven albums sell over a million copies in their first week in the U.S. Her The Eras Tour (2023–2024) is the highest-grossing concert tour ever.

Swift has a huge global fanbase known as Swifties. She has won 14 Grammy Awards, including a record four wins for Album of the Year. In 2023, she was named Time Person of the Year, the first artist to receive this honor.

Life and Career

Early Life and First Steps in Music

Taylor Alison Swift was born on December 13, 1989, in West Reading, Pennsylvania. She was named after the singer-songwriter James Taylor. Her father, Scott, was a stockbroker, and her mother, Andrea, was a marketing executive. She has a younger brother, Austin, who is an actor. Her grandmother, Marjorie Finlay, was an opera singer and one of Swift's first musical memories.

As a child, Swift grew up on a Christmas tree farm. At age nine, she became interested in musical theater. She traveled to New York City for acting and singing lessons. After watching a documentary about Faith Hill, she decided she wanted to be a country music star in Nashville, Tennessee.

At age 11, she went to Nashville to give demo tapes to record labels but was rejected. This made her focus on songwriting. When she was 12, a local musician taught her to play guitar and helped her write her first song. At 14, her family moved to Hendersonville, Tennessee, to help her career. She attended high school for two years before being homeschooled to fit her tour schedule.

2004–2008: A Star Is Born

In 2004, at age 14, Swift became the youngest songwriter ever signed by Sony/ATV Tree Music Publishing. She worked with experienced songwriters like Liz Rose. Swift wanted to release her music right away, while the songs still reflected her teenage life.

Swift opening for Brad Paisley in 2007. To promote her first album, she opened tours for other country musicians.

In 2005, she performed at the Bluebird Cafe in Nashville. Scott Borchetta, a music executive, was in the audience. He was starting a new record label, Big Machine Records, and signed Swift. Her father bought a small part of the company.

Her first single, "Tim McGraw", came out in June 2006. Her first album, Taylor Swift, was released that October. It reached number five on the Billboard 200 chart and stayed on the chart for 157 weeks. This was the longest run for any album in the 2000s. She became the first female country artist to write or co-write every song on a platinum-selling debut album.

2008–2010: Becoming Fearless

Swift at the 2009 premiere of Hannah Montana: The Movie. She had a small role in the film and wrote two songs for its soundtrack.

Swift's second album, Fearless, was released in November 2008. It was number one on the Billboard 200 for 11 weeks and was the best-selling album of 2009 in the U.S. The singles "Love Story" and "You Belong with Me" were huge hits on both country and pop radio.

In 2009, Swift started her first headlining tour, the Fearless Tour. The album Fearless won many awards, including Album of the Year at the Grammy Awards. Swift became the youngest person to win the Country Music Association's Entertainer of the Year award.

At the 2009 MTV Video Music Awards, her acceptance speech was famously interrupted by rapper Kanye West. This event got a lot of media attention. In 2010, she acted in the movie Valentine's Day.

2010–2014: Speak Now and Red

Swift on the Speak Now World Tour in 2011

Swift wrote her third album, Speak Now (2010), completely by herself. It mixed country-pop with rock music and sold over a million copies in its first week. The song "Mean" won two Grammy Awards. She toured the world with the Speak Now World Tour.

Her fourth album, Red (2012), included many different styles, like pop and rock. This led to discussions about whether she was still a country artist. Red also sold over a million copies in its first week. The singles "We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together" and "I Knew You Were Trouble" were worldwide hits. The Red Tour (2013–2014) became the highest-grossing country tour at the time.

Swift on the Red Tour in 2013

2014–2018: Pop Stardom with 1989 and Reputation

In 2014, Swift moved to New York City and fully transitioned to pop music with her fifth album, 1989. The album was inspired by 1980s synth-pop. It spent 11 weeks at number one and sold 14 million copies worldwide.

Swift on the 1989 World Tour, the highest-grossing tour of 2015

Three singles from 1989—"Shake It Off", "Blank Space", and "Bad Blood"—reached number one. The 1989 World Tour was the highest-grossing tour of 2015. At the 2016 Grammy Awards, 1989 won Album of the Year, making Swift the first woman to win the award twice.

After a public disagreement with Kanye West and Kim Kardashian, Swift took a break from the spotlight. In 2017, she won a court case against a radio host who had acted inappropriately towards her. This experience influenced her sixth album, Reputation (2017). The album explored themes of fame and drama and had a darker, electronic sound. Its lead single, "Look What You Made Me Do", hit number one. The Reputation Stadium Tour in 2018 was a huge success.

Swift on her Reputation Stadium Tour (2018)

2018–2021: New Label and Folk Albums

In 2018, Swift signed with Republic Records. This new deal allowed her to own her future music masters. Her first album with them was Lover (2019), a bright and upbeat pop record.

Swift at the American Music Awards of 2019, where she was named Artist of the Decade

In 2019, Swift got into a public dispute with her old label, Big Machine, over the ownership of her first six albums. She announced she would re-record them to have full control.

During the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, she released two surprise albums: Folklore and Evermore. These albums had a quieter, indie folk sound. Both albums and their lead singles, "Cardigan" and "Willow", debuted at number one. Folklore won the Grammy for Album of the Year, her third time winning the award.

2021–2023: Re-recordings and Midnights

Swift released her first two re-recorded albums in 2021: Fearless (Taylor's Version) and Red (Taylor's Version). Both went to number one. The 10-minute version of her song "All Too Well (10 Minute Version)" became the longest song ever to top the Billboard Hot 100 chart.

Swift performing in 2022

Her tenth studio album, Midnights, was released in October 2022. It broke many records, and Swift became the first artist to hold all top 10 spots on the Billboard Hot 100 chart at the same time. The lead single, "Anti-Hero", was a massive hit.

In 2023, she released two more re-recordings, Speak Now (Taylor's Version) and 1989 (Taylor's Version). These releases made her the woman with the most number-one albums in history. At the 2025 Grammy Awards, Midnights won Album of the Year, making Swift the first artist ever to win the award four times.

2023–Present: The Eras Tour and The Tortured Poets Department

Swift on the Eras Tour in 2023

In March 2023, Swift began The Eras Tour, a concert tour celebrating all of her musical eras. The tour was a massive cultural and economic event. It became the highest-grossing tour in history. A concert film of the tour also became the highest-grossing of its kind.

Her eleventh studio album, The Tortured Poets Department, was released in April 2024. It broke streaming records and debuted at number one. The album's songs took over the top 14 spots on the Billboard Hot 100, another record for Swift.

In 2023, Swift began dating football player Travis Kelce, and their relationship received a lot of media attention. On May 30, 2025, Swift finalized the purchase of the master recordings of her first six albums.

Artistry and Music

Musical Styles

Taylor Swift is known for changing her musical style. Her music includes pop, country, folk, and rock. Her first four albums were country pop. She was influenced by 1990s country artists like Shania Twain and Faith Hill.

With 1989, she moved to a synth-pop sound inspired by 1980s music. Reputation had a darker, electronic sound with hip-hop influences. Her 2020 albums, Folklore and Evermore, were a surprise shift to indie folk and alternative rock. This showed a more mature side of her songwriting.

Songwriting

Swift considers herself a songwriter first. Most of her songs are about her own life, especially her relationships and feelings. This "confessional" style has connected with millions of fans.

On Folklore and Evermore, she started writing songs about fictional characters and stories. This showed her growth as a storyteller. Critics have praised her for her clever lyrics and ability to write catchy, emotional songs. She is often called one of the greatest songwriters of her generation.

Achievements

Swift with her Best Female Video trophy at the 2009 MTV Video Music Awards

Taylor Swift has won hundreds of awards. These include:

• 14 Grammy Awards (including a record four for Album of the Year)
• 40 American Music Awards (the most of any artist)
• 49 Billboard Music Awards (the most of any artist)
• 30 MTV Video Music Awards

She holds many chart records. She is the female artist with the most number-one albums in the U.S. (14). She is the first artist to have five of the top 10 best-selling albums of the year in the U.S. In 2023, Time magazine named her Person of the Year, calling her a "rare person who is both the writer and hero of her own story."

Cultural Impact

Swift at the 2010 Time 100 Gala

Swift has had a huge impact on the music industry and popular culture. Her success with album sales is rare in the age of music streaming. She is known for being a smart businesswoman and for having a close relationship with her fans, the Swifties.

She has influenced many other artists and has been praised for her ability to change industry practices. For example, her actions led to Apple Music changing its policy to pay artists during free trial periods. Many universities now offer courses on her work, studying her lyrics, career, and cultural impact.

Philanthropy

Swift is known for her generosity. She has donated millions of dollars to various causes. These include disaster relief, education, cancer research, and food banks.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, she donated to the World Health Organization and supported independent record stores. She has also made many donations to her fans to help with their medical or school expenses. During The Eras Tour, she made large donations to food banks in the cities she visited and gave millions in bonuses to her tour crew.

Discography

Filmography

Tours

• Fearless Tour (2009–2010)
• Speak Now World Tour (2011–2012)
• The Red Tour (2013–2014)
• The 1989 World Tour (2015)
• Reputation Stadium Tour (2018)
• The Eras Tour (2023–2024)

Interesting Facts About Taylor Swift

• Taylor Swift was named after the singer-songwriter James Taylor.
• She has Scottish and German family roots.
• Her grandmother on her mother's side, Marjorie Finlay, was an opera singer.
• Her younger brother, Austin, is an actor.
• Swift is a Christian.
• Shania Twain was Taylor Swift's biggest musical influence.
• Faith Hill was Taylor's role model when she was a child. Taylor would often pretend to be her.
• "Kiss Me" by Sixpence None the Richer was the first song Taylor learned on the guitar.
• In 2009, she acted for the first time on TV. She played a rebellious teenager in an episode of CSI: Crime Scene Investigation.
• She hosted and performed on Saturday Night Live. She was the first host to write her own opening speech.
• Taylor Swift is known for trying different music styles. She has been called a "music chameleon" because she changes her artistic style.
• She is the first living artist to have five albums in the top 10 of the Billboard 200 at the same time.
• Scientists who study insects named a millipede species Nannaria swiftae after her.
• YouGov surveys ranked her as the world's most admired female musician from 2019 to 2021.
• Taylor Swift loves cats. Her pet cats have been in her music videos. One of her cats is the third richest pet animal in the world!
• Taylor Swift received an honorary Doctor of Fine Arts degree from New York University. She also gave the graduation speech on May 18, 2022.

Taylor Swift Quotes

• "No matter what happens in life, be good to people. Being good to people is a wonderful legacy to leave behind."
• "Anytime someone tells me that I can't do something, I want to do it more."
• "We don't need to share the same opinions as others, but we need to be respectful."
• "I love making new friends and I respect people for a lot of different reasons."

See also

In Spanish: Taylor Swift para niños

• List of American Grammy Award winners and nominees
• List of highest-certified music artists in the United States