Taylor Swift is a Nashville girl. She's very nice, very sweet, and not one bit a popstar designed to work over here. Everything about her is so very American that her long stay at #1 in the States comes as no shock. But Taylor having a big hit in the UK? No chance.
How wrong we were. Instead of drifting by, Taylor has captured the hearts of British teenagers with her slushy songs. Her first UK hit 'Love Story' is a simple tale of girl meets boy, falls in love and later gets swept away by her Romeo. There's a subtle difference from the American original - a lack of twangy bassline. In fact 'Fearless' has entirely been slightly tweaked to zap out the country vibes and make her more palatable internationally.
The teenage audience is really the key to her success though. At 19 she personally knows the emotions of teenage girls, a knowledge she demonstrates perfectly on Fifteen singing "when you're fifteen and somebody tells you they love you, you're gonna believe it" or when chastising her boy feeling on the feisty 'Tell Me Why'. It's sickly sweet at times, none more so than in the schmaltzy 'The Best Day', an ode to her parents in which she labels her mom "the prettiest lady in the whole wide world." Pass us the sick bucket.
Yet if you can get over the syrup, Taylor's music is packed with delicate melodies and an idealised view of romance despite protestations on 'White Horse'. "Fearless" could easily be described as dreary and inoffensive, but if you connect with her lyrics, then she could be the very person to help guide you through your first love.
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