BOSTON — In 2006, there was no playbook for a teenage country artist on a brand-new independent label. So Taylor Swift and Big Machine wrote one. The debut album found its audience the old-fashioned way and the brand-new way at the same time.

Station by station

“Tim McGraw” went to country radio in June 2006, four months before the album came out. Then Taylor went on the road, visiting radio stations across the country on a radio tour that lasted about six months, through the end of the year. It was slow, unglamorous work: introducing herself, playing the song live and thanking programmers one station at a time. It worked. The single reached No. 6 on Hot Country Songs.

The Myspace generation

At the same time, Taylor was doing something few country artists did: talking to fans online. She used Myspace to post blogs and share song information, and it drew in teenagers and young adults who did not necessarily listen to country radio. That direct line to fans became a hallmark of her career.

Opening for the biggest names in country

The live shows came next. Taylor opened for Rascal Flatts in late 2006, then for George Strait in early 2007, toured with Brad Paisley through 2007, and in July 2007 opened for Tim McGraw and Faith Hill, the couple whose name was on her first single.

Crossing over

By 2007, “Teardrops on My Guitar” had crossed from country into pop radio, reaching No. 13 on the Hot 100 and the Top 10 on several pop and adult formats. More than a year after release, the album kept climbing, peaking at No. 5 on the Billboard 200 in January 2008.

The lesson

Show up, play the song, talk to your fans yourself. Twenty years later, it is still a pretty good marketing plan.

Sources

• Wikipedia: Taylor Swift (album), release and promotion)

Boston Made is not affiliated with or endorsed by Taylor Swift or her record labels. Photos are freely licensed from Wikimedia Commons and credited under each image.

BOSTON — Forty minutes and 28 seconds. That is the entire running time of the standard edition of Taylor Swift, 11 songs that introduced one of the defining songwriters of her generation. Every song carries her name in the credits. Here is the whole album, one track at a time.

1. “Tim McGraw”

Written by Taylor Swift, Liz Rose · 3:54

Nostalgia for a relationship with an older boyfriend, built around the songs that remind you of someone. It became the first single.

2. “Picture to Burn”

Written by Taylor Swift, Liz Rose · 2:55

A sharp, funny kiss-off to an ex who did her wrong. It reached the country Top 10.

3. “Teardrops on My Guitar”

Written by Taylor Swift, Liz Rose · 3:35

Unrequited love for a boy who likes someone else. Her first big crossover hit, reaching No. 13 on the Hot 100.

4. “A Place in This World”

Written by Taylor Swift, Robert Ellis Orrall, Angelo Petraglia · 3:22

A teenager’s uncertainty about where she belongs and what comes next.

5. “Cold as You”

Written by Taylor Swift, Liz Rose · 4:01

A relationship with someone who never appreciated her.

6. “The Outside”

Written by Taylor Swift · 3:29

Loneliness after her love of country music set her apart at school. One of three songs she wrote alone.

7. “Tied Together with a Smile”

Written by Taylor Swift, Liz Rose · 4:11

Written about a friend struggling with an eating disorder, and about how people hide pain behind a smile.

8. “Stay Beautiful”

Written by Taylor Swift, Liz Rose · 3:58

Admiring someone from afar, without him ever knowing.

9. “Should’ve Said No”

Written by Taylor Swift · 4:04

Confronting a cheating ex. Written alone, it became her second country No. 1.

10. “Mary’s Song (Oh My My My)”

Written by Taylor Swift, Liz Rose, Brian Maher · 3:35

A love story that lasts from childhood to marriage.

11. “Our Song”

Written by Taylor Swift · 3:24

A couple who make a song out of their everyday moments. Written alone, it went to No. 1 on Hot Country Songs.

The writers’ room

Seven of the 11 songs were co-written with Liz Rose, who met Taylor through her publishing deal and became her most important early collaborator. Robert Ellis Orrall and Angelo Petraglia co-wrote “A Place in This World,” and Brian Maher joined Taylor and Rose on “Mary’s Song.” Three songs, “The Outside,” “Should’ve Said No” and “Our Song,” are Taylor’s alone.

A note on “Tied Together with a Smile”

One of the album’s quietest songs carries one of its heaviest subjects. If you or someone you love is struggling with an eating disorder, support is available from the National Alliance for Eating Disorders.

Sources

• Wikipedia: Taylor Swift (album), track listing and songs)

Boston Made is not affiliated with or endorsed by Taylor Swift or her record labels. Photos are freely licensed from Wikimedia Commons and credited under each image.

BOSTON — Before there was a debut album, there was a teenager who refused to wait. The story of how Taylor Swift came to exist is a story about saying no to the wrong deal and yes to the right room.

Walking away at 13

When Taylor was 13, RCA Records offered her an artist development deal. On paper it was a dream. In practice, the label wanted to keep her in development until she turned 18. She did not want to wait five years to make an album, so she left.

A songwriter at 14

At 14, she signed a songwriting deal with Sony/ATV in Nashville, becoming the youngest songwriter the publisher had ever signed. The family relocated to the Nashville area so she could write with professionals after school. That is how she met Liz Rose, the songwriter who would go on to co-write seven of the debut’s 11 songs.

The Bluebird Café, November 2004

The Bluebird Café is a small room with a huge reputation. It is where Nashville’s songwriters play their songs in the round, and where industry people go to listen. In November 2004, Taylor played a showcase there. In the audience was Scott Borchetta, a music executive who was starting his own label, Big Machine Records.

Borchetta offered her a recording contract. About two weeks later, she said yes, choosing an independent label that did not yet exist over the safety of a major. Big Machine partnered with Universal Music Group for distribution, and the contract was finalized by July 2005.

Finding the sound

The label tried several producers before settling on Nathan Chapman, a little-known producer Taylor had been making demos with. It was the right call. Chapman produced every song on the album except “The Outside,” and recording took about four months, wrapping up near the end of Taylor’s freshman year of high school.

Why it still matters

Every decision in this story points in the same direction: songwriting first, control over her own work, and betting on herself. Twenty years later, those are still the throughlines of her career.

Sources

• Wikipedia: Taylor Swift (album), background and development)

Boston Made is not affiliated with or endorsed by Taylor Swift or her record labels. Photos are freely licensed from Wikimedia Commons and credited under each image.