Taylor Swift is a famous female pop artist in the music industry, with 11 Grammys, 40 AMAs (which is a record for all artists), and 14 MTV awards. She writes all of her songs, directs most of her music videos, and puts on performances for sold out stadiums across the world. So far, she has released ten studio albums. I will rank them from one, my personal favorite, to ten, my least favorite.
- Taylor Swift—2006
This is Taylor Swift’s eponymous debut album. Although ranked last due to its underdevelopment, with less amount of words and Swift’s younger voice compared to other albums, it’s still a solid album about her teenage years. She wrote most of the songs when she was a freshman in high school, an impressive feature that reflects her talent. My top three favorites on this album are “The Outside,” “Tied Together with a Smile,” and “Mary’s Song.”
- Fearless (Taylor’s Version)—2021
Fearless came out in 2008 as Swift’s second studio album. However, after losing the rights to her first six albums to Scooter Braun she re-recorded it in 2021, and plans to re-record the other albums throughout the years. This album has a lot of amazing songs and lyrics like, “I’ve found time can heal most anything and you just might find who you’re supposed to be.” from the song, “Fifteen.” It extends upon the country influences from “Taylor Swift”, and includes smash hits such as “Love Story” and “You Belong With Me”. Fearless is the perfect coming-of-age album for any high schooler, and explores very relatable themes. My top three are “Forever & Always,” “Love Story,” and “The Way I Loved You.”
- Lover—2019
Swift’s seventh studio album centers around having a happy and healthy life despite all obstacles. The overall theme of the album centers around bright colors and the feeling of being in love. I love this album because it can honestly lift your spirits with pop songs like, “ME!” and “I Forgot That You Existed”, while still being versatile with slower songs like “The Archer” and “It’s Nice to Have a Friend.” It has major hits but lacks the imagery and implied metaphors that define her lyrics in her other albums, particularly folklore and evermore. My top three on this album are “The Archer,” “Cornelia Street,” and “Daylight.”
- Reputation—2017
Swift’s sixth studio album is her iconic comeback album, released after she disappeared from the public eye for all of 2016 because of social media harassment. Its themes of betrayal make it a cryptic album, but still sharing an empowering message. This album is a turn from Swift’s discography considering her albums before this were never thought of as “cryptic”. Songs such as “I Did Something Bad” and “Look What You Made Me Do” were controversial hits, sharing messages of empowerment which can resonate with many listeners. However, Reputation is about more than just revenge or betrayal– it’s also about finding good in the darkest of times. Love songs like “Delicate”, “New Year’s Day”, “Dress” pepper the album, bringing in a sweet–or rather– delicate element. My top three songs are “Gorgeous,” “Dancing With Our Hands Tied,” and “Call it What You Want.”
- Speak Now—2010
Speak now is Swift’s third studio album, which she wrote all by herself at 19, whereas in other albums she wrote her songs with co-writers. Its incredible songs have meaningful and relatable lyrics; for example, the song “Mean” addresses an issue many young people struggle with– bullying. Sonically, this album expands on Swift’s country influences, while being a little bit more punchy. Scathing songs such as Dear John and Better than Revenge add a sense of teenage melodrama to the album. The songs are countered, however, by sweeter tunes like hit “Enchanted” and “Mine” These songs make it very impressive, and it is definitely underrated. My top three songs are “Dear John,” “Last Kiss,” and “Never Grow Up.”
- Folklore (deluxe version)—2020
Swift’s eighth studio album is the sister album to Evermore, the two albums are sonically very similar. Folklore is in the genre of indie pop, and is the pinnacle of Swift’s storytelling. It has very impactful songs that leave you thinking and maybe even emotional. It also has a wide variety of poetic vocabulary throughout the album (post-release, social media joked that a dictionary was needed to listen to the album). Like evermore, this album does not reflect her personal life—this album actually centers on a fictional love triangle. My top three favorite songs are “the lakes,” because of its soft sound and incredibly out-standing lyrics that I’ve never seen other artists do, like “is it romantic how all my elegies eulogize me.” As Well as “the last great american dynasty,” that is more up-beat and tells the story of Swift’s Rhode Island home’s previous owner– a women who is a “gold digger” and is hated by the town. and “my tears ricochet.”
- evermore (deluxe version)—2021
Swift’s ninth studio album was released as a surprise “sequel” to folklore. An alternative/indie album that makes for a very nice, calm listen, I play it whenever I’m studying. It stands out among her albums because of its unique sound that makes me feel relaxed. I truly appreciate and love this album. My three favorite songs are “tolerate it,” “ivy,” and “it’s time to go.”
- 1989 (Deluxe Version)—2014
Swift’s fifth studio album was named after the year she was born. i It was the second biggest album of the 2010s. It’s a fun, exciting listen mostly because of the thrill of pop beats. This album had an immensely popular world tour. She filled her setlist with her biggest hits, including “Shake It Off” and “Blank Space”. I love to get ready while listening to this album, and often blast it in the car with my friends. My three favorite songs are “Style,” “How You Get The Girl,” and “This Love.”
- Red (Taylor’s Version)—2021
This is Swift’s second re-record. Originally, Red came out in 2012. Because Scooter Braun bought Big Machine Records, the record label Swift used to publish her first 6 albums, she intends to own her music by re-recording each album. In August 2019, Swift went on Good Morning America and said, “My contract says that starting November 2020, so next year, I can record albums one through six all over again.” This incredible album contains many hit songs, including a previously-unreleased 10-minute version of “All Too Well.” This album deals with heartbreak and healing. Its imagery, lyrics, and production are mind-blowing, it has a fractured mosaic of feeling and can be relatable to anyone dealing with heartbreak. My top three songs are “Red (Taylor’s Version),” “Nothing New (Taylor’s Version) [From the Vault],” and “All Too Well (10 Minute Version) (Taylor’s Version) [From the Vault].”
- Midnights (3 am Edition)—2022
I think that Swift’s tenth studio album, which came out recently, is her best yet. It’s a no-skip album that has already broken multiple records just weeks after its release. This album made Swift the first artist to claim every spot in the top ten of the Billboard Hot 100. Midnights has the most streams in a single day of any album on Spotify. It also holds the record for the largest sales week for a vinyl album. It talks about self-reflection and different types of love. After the album was released at midnight October 21, 2022 , Swift came out with seven more songs at three am and titled it Midnights (3 am edition) which includes deeper songs that reflect on Swift’s personal life and has emotional lyrics like “Would’ve Could’ve Should’ve”. It’s impossible to pick a favorite for this album since every song has cool sounds, deep lyrics, and hidden meanings. However, these are the ones that I listen to most, because they are relatable and fun to dance to: “You’re on Your Own, Kid,” “Karma,” and “The Great War.”
