8 Years of “Red”: The Album That Put Taylor Swift on the Pop Map

Taylor Swift is undeniably the face, or at least one of the most recognisable faces, of the global pop music scene. But, back in 2012, she was just getting started, branching out into pop music. The singer had previously rooted herself firmly in the country music scene. But, with the release of her fourth studio album, “Red”, she began something that took off in unprecedented fashion – her claim to pop superstardom. And, now, 8 years later, we’re taking a look at how the album put Swift at the center of the pop map. 

A Treasure Trove of Hit Singles

“Red” was eventually accompanied by a total of 7 singles. And, of those 7, the 4 that broke into the Top 10 of the Billboard Hot 100 were ‘We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together’, ‘I Knew You Were Trouble‘, ’22’, and ‘Red’. But, what’s most surprising is that the album actually gave Swift her first ever Hot 100 #1 in the US. The lead single, ‘ We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together’ landed atop the chart for three non-consecutive weeks. And, so began her ascent into the world of pop music and radio-friends singles. 

In addition, “Red” landed atop the Billboard 200 albums chart, after a debut week of 1.2 million copies sold. Scoring No. 1, Taylor Swift also became the first female artist in history to have three consecutive studio album debut at No. 1 on the ranking system. Further, she also scored one of the biggest debut weeks in terms of sales in the year 2012, surpassing the numbers of the first 52 acts on the chart that week. 

“Red” Knows No Genre

But, it’s important to note that “Red” was released before the times of streaming parties and highly technical fan support – something most pop stars, including Swift are privy to today. In fact, many critics at the time commented on how the album opened up Swift’s musical world to a variety of previous non-listeners. Taking the songwriting one step further and presenting listeners with a mature, evocative mode of writing, Swift combined themes of loss and love with synth-pop, country-pop, pop-rock, and more. And, that’s what stood out. In Taylor’s own words, the album is a “patchwork quilt of songs”. No song sounds like the other, and each had its own unique style and genre. 

Swift Launches Her Pop Career

Further, “Red” proved to be the start of many interesting collaborative journeys for Swift. The most notable being her work with producer Max Martin. The producer contributed to two singles from the album. And, Swift later went on to collaborate with Martin on tracks on “1989” as well. 

Further, owing to it’s variety-genre nature, “Red” went on to become Swift’s second consecutive million dollar seller. And, as of 2020, it stands at over 7 million copies sold worldwide.

With “Red”, Swift attempted to break free from her previous song making techniques. The album was a result of her attempt at breaking out of repetitive writing processes. And, 8 years later, it proves to be the project that kicked off her transformation into the pop persona she is today. 

By: Ahalya Narayanan