It’s Taylor Swift’s moment

Then again, when isn't it?

View this email online April 20, 2024 by Jacob Ganz NPR Music's chief editor, filling in for Ann Powers this week, lets the Tortured Poets wave sweep over him. Beth Garrabrant /Courtesy of the artist We have just come to the end of a particular moment in time — it was actually almost 11 weeks — where something moderately exceptional occurred. Ever since she announced the impending release of her 11th album on stage at the Grammy Awards in early February, Taylor Swift has stayed more or less out of the headlines. That moment ended this week, in spectacular fashion, with the release of said album, The Tortured Poets Department. And Swifties were, unsurprisingly, ready to rejoin the chat.  That might sound a little glib, but when someone is so expert at commanding attention, I think it’s notable to mark the occasions when they step back for the sake of privacy or sanity or simply to let anticipation build. Nobody is better than Swift at making everyday gestures feel like clues to unlocking deeper meaning, and she did it again and again all last year, with a dominant world tour, a film, endless gossip about her love life, and the release of two re-recorded albums from her back catalog, part of a project that has a redemption narrative, but also has the benefit of maintaining her place in the center of the public frame of vision. It was inarguably the biggest year of her career and she managed it all without releasing a new album. Now that the break is over, we are of course going to keep hearing about her. Tortured Poets has been carefully crafted to maintain a grip on the news cycle, with lyrical easter eggs to uncover and chart milestones to break. When she released her last album, Midnights, in October 2022, she became the first artist to occupy all 10 spots at the top of the Billboard Hot 100 songs chart. With 31 new songs on the deluxe version of her new album, expect Swift to expand her claim at the chart’s peak. Fourteen years ago, in the days before she released her third album, Speak Now, I wrote a piece that wondered how much of the music industry was resting on Swift’s shoulders, and since then she has managed to stay at least one step ahead of all of her competitors … and accumulate an even larger share of the market.   You’ll have noticed by now that I haven’t written anything about the music on The Tortured Poets Department. I won’t say a lot – you should read the incredible review of the album by my colleague Ann Powers, or listen to Ann talk about Tortured Poets and the other new albums out this week (yes, there were others, and they’re worth listening to) with Hazel Cills on our New Music Friday podcast. I’ve spent a little time with the album, which rests on sounds she’s been developing with her collaborators for the last few years and covers familiar-to-Swifties topics like the glowing starts and bitter ends of relationships. But I found myself surprised at how bad I felt, at times, for Swift, how alone she seemed. That doesn’t match the ecstatic images of her that flowed through feeds in 2023, with stadiums full of fans watching her even when there was an actual football game being played. That’s her art, I guess. Give her your attention and she’ll change your perception. Newsletter continues after sponsor message There are, of course, other ways of measuring attention. A song that can dominate its moment is great, but how about one that lasts half a century? “Come and Get Your Love” by Redbone became the first song by an all-Native and Mexican American band to crack the Billboard Hot 100’s top 10 50 years ago this week. NPR’s Elizabeth Blair gave us a great piece that looked not only at the distance that song had to travel to become a hit, but also the path it has paved for other Native musicians since.  A song that lasts half a century is a special thing, but how about forever? On Tuesday, the Library of Congress announced the 25 recordings “worthy of preservation for all time” that have been added to the National Recording Registry. You can see the full list here. While I’d never argue that, say, The Cars ever had anything like the cultural or artistic significance that Taylor Swift does, I’m also not sure that (to take that band’s first album – now preserved in the National Recording Registry – as an example) two-thirds of the songs on Tortured Poets will make it onto Taylor’s eventual greatest hits album, if greatest hits albums are a thing that anyone ever makes again. Then again, maybe it doesn’t matter when a song came out. My 7 year old is a devoted fan of Swift’s music, and she also loves “Just What I Needed.” NPR Classical Please reuse your symphonies for Earth Day! Introducing NPR Music+, a new way to support what you love and explore new music and conversations sponsor-free. NPR Music+ includes two podcasts with one convenient subscription: All Songs Considered and Alt.Latino, both sponsor-free. Learn more and support us at plus.npr.org/NPRmusic Get NPR Music+ Listen to your local NPR station. Visit NPR.org to hear live radio from WUFT 89.1 (edit station). Need a new playlist? Follow NPR Music on Spotify and Apple Music What do you think of today's email? We'd love to hear your thoughts, questions and feedback: nprmusic@npr.org Enjoying this newsletter? Forward to a friend! They can sign up here. Looking for more great content? Check out all of our newsletter offerings — including Books, Pop Culture, Health and more! You received this message because you're subscribed to NPR Music emails. 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