What Are Taylor Swift's Eras?

What Are Taylor Swift’s Eras?

On May 9, 2024, Taylor Swift resumed the Eras Tour in Paris, France, after a two-month break. But Taylor wasn’t just resting between shows . . . she was working hard. Three weeks before the Paris show, she had released a double album, The Tortured Poets Department and The Tortured Poets Department: The Anthology, containing a total of thirty--one new songs. Throughout the first shows of her massive tour across North and South America, the set list had remained largely unchanged with a few exceptions. But as the countdown clock began that night in Paris, fans were curious if she’d be adding a new set for the new album or if things would stay the same. After all, the Eras Tour was so successful already. Taylor could leave it as it had been, and everyone would still be happy with the spectacular three-hour show she had originally created.

Throughout the show, fans—also known as “Swifties”—noticed some changes. The order had been rearranged, songs had been cut, and Taylor wore several new costumes. Did this mean a new section of the show would be added for The Tortured Poets Department?

The 1989 era came to an end. The audience whispered to one another, eager to see what would come next. Normally at this point in the show, Taylor had a costume change, with the help of her dancers, before she performed the surprise songs. But this time, the stage went totally dark. A video played of white papers fluttering down and a long desert road. The dancers emerged in new white costumes. Finally, Taylor rose from below the stage in a beautiful white gown. Fans cheered and screamed. The Tortured Poets Department era had begun.

Defined as a distinct period of time with particular features or characteristics, an era can describe the fashion of a period, a political figure or event, or even the technology of a time. But for Taylor Swift, an era describes the lifespan of an album. Each of Taylor’s albums represents a unique musical era in her career, characterized by specific colors, fashion, images, themes, music genres, and more.

At the start of the show in Paris, Taylor told the crowd, “So you and I? We’re about to go on a grand adventure together. And that adventure is going to span eighteen years of music and we’re going to be doing this one era at a time. How does that sound to you, Paris?”

As Taylor herself would say: Are you ready for it?

Chapter 1
The Taylor Swift Era

Before moving to Nashville in 2003, Taylor signed a deal with RCA Records, one of the biggest record companies in the music industry. But after a year, they didn’t think Taylor would be ready for an album until she was eighteen years old. That was four years away for the fourteen-year-old! So instead of renewing her deal, Taylor went back to playing her music around Nashville.

In 2004, she finally got the attention of music executive Scott Borchetta while playing a show at the Bluebird Cafe. He wanted to offer her a deal with his new record company, Big Machine Records.

Her self-titled debut album was released on October 24, 2006. Taylor Swift was a country album, with country music elements like a bit of twang in her vocals and featured instruments like fiddles and banjos. While Taylor didn’t have a tour of her own during this time, she did get the opportunity to tour with many top country acts such as Rascal Flatts, Brad Paisley, and Tim McGraw and Faith Hill. She was their “opener,” which means she performed for the audience before the country stars began their shows.

In this era, Taylor celebrated being the typical American teenage girl. She was only sixteen years old, still in high school, and she just wanted the opportunity to write and sing her songs. Her first single, “Tim McGraw,” was released on June 19, 2006, and it took radio stations by storm, reaching number six on the Hot Country Songs chart. With her first single also came her first music video. It highlighted a summer in the countryside, with pickup trucks and open fields. Other singles included “Our Song,” “Teardrops on My Guitar,” and “Should’ve Said No.”

The teal-blue and green album cover was bright and beautiful, with butterflies and Taylor front and center. Along with the country -music genre, Taylor embraced some elements of country style as well and often wore cowboy boots and flowy sundresses during this time. Objects and settings that represent this era include small hometowns, grassy fields, cowboy boots, white dresses, flowers, and guitars. This era is youthful and relatable, and it is considered very “girl next door.” “Girl next door” is a phrase used to describe someone as a likable girl who is approachable and sweet.

The debut album received positive reviews and even earned Taylor award nominations like Top New Female Vocalist of the Year at the 2006 Academy of Country Music Awards and a nomination for Best New Artist at the 2008 Grammy Awards. Though she didn’t win her first Grammy with this album, it was very impressive to be nominated at such a young age.