Taylor

Taylor Swift, the rarest pop sensation, is one who has managed to cross from the country genre to mainstream culture, and has become an idol of the pop world. Swift also took on all over the world in the process. Swift removed the influences of country in the sense that they had been added as an extra layer of skin, revealing she was one of the best singers/songwriters of her time. Swift could make the moment personal or harness the moment to benefit. This was evident in her early hits including the neo-tribute Tim McGraw but her second album, 2008's Fearless showed a writer discovering the person she really was, and in the process finding a mass audience. Fearless became hugely popular not only in America which is where its Top Ten singles Love Story and Belong with Me helped it to record six platinum albums but also around the world. It was a huge success across Canada, Australia and the U.K. Swift was able to consolidate her popularity through Speak Now almost two year later. In the following three years, Swift's popularity increased -- Red (2012), Reputation (2014) in addition to 1989 (2014-2015) -- as Swift entered the arena of pop with her skills already well-established. In the end, when she refocused her music to the stripped-down versions of 2020, folklore, and Evermore however, she remained in the top spot. It was a position that was confirmed through re-recordings of her previous catalogue as well as Midnights which was her chart-topping synth heavy 2022 album.