2 Used Country Music CDs: Taylor Swift - Red (CD 2012) & Reba McEntire - Rumor Has It (CD). Condition of Both CDs & Inserts: Like New & 100% Computer Certified Playable, Condition of CD Cases: New (see actual front & back photos).
Used Country Music CD 1. Taylor Swift - Red (CD 2012):
| Album Features | |
| UPC: | 843930007073 |
| Artist: | Taylor Swift |
| Format: | CD |
| Release Year: | 2012 |
| Record Label: | Big Machine Records |
| Genre: | Rock & Pop, Teen Pop |
Track Listing
1. State of Grace
2. Red
3. Treacherous
4. I Knew You Were Trouble
5. All Too Well
6. 22
7. I Almost Do
8. We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together
9. Stay Stay Stay
10. Last Time, The
11. Holy Ground
12. Sad Beautiful Tragic
13. Lucky One, The
14. Everything Has Changed
15. Starlight
16. Begin Again
| Details | |
| Playing Time: | 65 min. |
| Contributing Artists: | Gary Lightbody, Ed Sheeran |
| Distributor: | Universal Distribution |
| Recording Mode: | Stereo |
| SPAR Code: | n/a |
Album Notes
Photographer: Sarah Barlow.For her fourth album, Red, country-pop superstar Taylor Swift makes a decided move into straight-ahead pop. Nowhere is this shift clearer than on the album's first single, "We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together," a song co-written and produced by pop powerhouse Max Martin, who is hardly the only big-name collaborator here. Dan Wilson, who co-wrote a chunk of Adele's 21, works with Swift here, as does L.A. staple Butch Walker, Mark Foster of Foster the People, and singer/songwriter Lori McKenna, each musician guaranteeing that Red will be Swift's most unpredictable record yet.
Editorial Reviews
Rolling Stone
Used Country Music CD 2. Reba McEntire - Rumor Has It (CD):
| Album Features | |
| UPC: | 076731001623 |
| Artist: | Reba McEntire |
| Format: | CD |
| Release Year: | 1990 |
| Record Label: | MCA (USA) |
| Genre: | Contemporary Country, Country |
Track Listing
1. Climb That Mountain High
2. Rumor Has It
3. Waitin' for the Deal to Go Down
4. You Lie
5. Now You Tell Me
6. Fancy
7. Fallin' Out of Love
8. This Picture
9. You Remember Me
10. That's All She Wrote
| Details | |
| Playing Time: | 38 min. |
| Producer: | Reba McEntire, Tony Brown |
| Distributor: | Universal Distribution |
| Recording Type: | Studio |
| Recording Mode: | Stereo |
| SPAR Code: | DDD |
Album Notes
Personnel: Reba McEntire (vocals); Steve Gibson (guitar, mandolin); Dann Huff (electric guitar); Steve Fishell (steel guitar); Jon Jarvis, Matt Rollings (keyboards); Kirk Cappello (synthesizer); Michael Rhodes (bass); Edgar Meyer (arco bass); Larrie Londin (drums).Personnel: Reba McEntire (vocals, background vocals); Steve Gibson (acoustic guitar, electric guitar, mandolin); Dann Huff (electric guitar); Steve Fishell (steel guitar); Matt Rollings, John Jarvis (keyboards); Kirk Cappello (synthesizer); Larrie Londin (drums); Paula Kaye Wallace, Harry Stinson, Suzy Wills, Vicki Hampton, Vince Gill, Kim Fleming, Bob Bailey, Yvonne Hodges (background vocals).Audio Mixer: John Guess.Recording information: Emerald Studio.Photographers: Paul Elledge; McGuire.Despite the oddly Greta Garbo-like look Reba McEntire affects on the album cover, RUMOR HAS IT is a straightforward early '90s mainstream country album. In addition to a few co-written tunes, including the soaring opener and first single "Climb That Mountain High," and a handful of tunes from the Music Row songwriting factory, RUMOR HAS IT allows McEntire to cover a few obscure old favorites. Jesse Winchester's folky singer-songwriter gem "You Remember Me" is given a heartfelt reading, but the album's highlight is an absolutely fabulous reading of Bobbie Gentry's "Fancy"--a story song about a woman looking back on her dirt-poor upbringing and subsequent life as a high-class prostitute. The key to "Fancy" is that the narrator is proud of how her life has turned out, and McEntire sings the somewhat over-the-top lyrics with a mix of sly humor and flinty resolve that fits perfectly with the character. It's one of McEntire's most entertaining covers, and a highlight on a somewhat overlooked album.
Editorial Reviews
Stereo Review (19901101)
BIP1307212CDSTSRRMRHI10601460
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Taylor Swift
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Taylor Swift performing in St. Louis as part of her 2013 Red Tour
Background information
Birth name Taylor Alison Swift
Born (1989-12-13) December 13, 1989 (age 23)
Reading, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Genres Country, country pop, pop, pop rock
Instruments Vocals, acoustic guitar, electric guitar, banjo guitar, ukulele, piano
Years active 2003–present
Labels Big Machine
Taylor Alison Swift (born December 13, 1989) is an American singer-songwriter. Raised in Wyomissing, Pennsylvania, Swift moved to Nashville, Tennessee at the age of fourteen to pursue a career in country music. She signed to the independent label Big Machine Records and became the youngest songwriter ever hired by the Sony/ATV Music publishing house. The release of Swift's eponymous debut album in 2006 established her as a country music star. "Our Song", her third single, made her the youngest person to single-handedly write and perform a number one song on the country chart. She received a Best New Artist nomination at the 2008 Grammy Awards.
Swift's second album, Fearless, was released in 2008. Buoyed by the pop crossover success of the singles "Love Story" and "You Belong with Me", Fearless became the best-selling album of 2009 and was supported by an extensive concert tour. The record won four Grammy Awards, with Swift becoming the youngest ever Album of the Year winner. Swift's third album, 2010's Speak Now, sold over one million copies in its first week of US release and was supported by the Speak Now World Tour. The album's third single, "Mean", won two Grammy Awards. Swift's fourth album, Red, was released in 2012. Its opening US sales of 1.2 million were the highest recorded in a decade, with Swift becoming the only female artist to have two million-plus opening weeks. The singles "We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together" and "I Knew You Were Trouble" were worldwide hits. The North American leg of Swift's Red Tour will run until September 2013.
Swift is known for her narrative songs about her experiences as a teenager and young adult. As a songwriter, she has been honored by the Nashville Songwriters Association and the Songwriters Hall of Fame. Swift's other achievements include seven Grammy Awards, twelve Billboard Music Awards, eleven American Music Awards, seven Country Music Association Awards and six Academy of Country Music Awards. She has sold over 26 million albums and 75 million digital downloads worldwide. In addition to her music career, Swift has appeared as an actress in the crime drama CSI (2009), the ensemble comedy Valentine's Day (2010), the animated film The Lorax (2012) and the sitcom New Girl (2013). Forbes estimates that she is worth over $220 million. As a philanthropist, Swift supports arts education, children's literacy, natural disaster relief, LGBT anti-discrimination efforts, and charities for sick children.
Contents:
1 Early life
2 Music career
2.1 2004–08: Career beginnings and Taylor Swift
2.2 2008–10: Fearless, VMA controversy and Grammy backlash
2.3 2010–12: Speak Now and world tour
2.4 2012–present: Red and intense media scrutiny
3 Artistry
3.1 Influences
3.2 Peer recognition
3.3 Lyrical themes and style
3.4 Musical and vocal style
3.5 Public image
4 Product endorsements
5 Acting career
6 Philanthropy
7 Personal life
7.1 Relationships
7.2 Politics
8 Awards and nominations
9 Discography
10 Concert tours
11 Filmography
Early life:
Taylor Alison Swift was born on December 13, 1989 in Reading, Pennsylvania.[1] Her father, Scott Kingsley Swift, is a Merrill Lynch financial adviser.[2] He was raised in Pennsylvania, and is the descendant of three generations of bank presidents.[1][3] Her mother, Andrea (née Finlay), is a homemaker who previously worked as a mutual fund marketing executive.[4] Andrea spent the first ten years of her life in Singapore, before settling in Texas; her father was an oil rig engineer who worked throughout Southeast Asia.[3] Swift was given a gender-neutral name because her mother believed it would help her forge a successful business career.[5] She has a younger brother, Austin, who attends the University of Notre Dame.[6] She spent the early years of her life on an eleven-acre Christmas tree farm in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania. She attended preschool and kindergarten at the Alvernia Montessori School, run by Franciscan nuns,[7] and was later educated at the Wyndcroft School, a co-ed private school located in Pottstown, Pennsylvania.[8] When Swift was nine years old, the family moved to Wyomissing, Pennsylvania, where she attended West Reading Elementary Center and Wyomissing Area Junior/Senior High School.[9] She also participated in Vacation Bible School programmes.[10] Swift summered at her parents' beachfront vacation home in Stone Harbor, New Jersey and has described it as the place "where most of my childhood memories were formed".[11]
Swift's family owned several Quarter horses and a Shetland pony and her first hobby was English horse riding.[12] Her mother first put her in a saddle when she was nine months old and she later competed in horse shows.[13] At the age of nine, Swift became interested in musical theatre. She performed in many Berks Youth Theatre Academy productions and traveled regularly to Broadway for vocal and acting lessons.[14][15] Swift then turned her attention to country music; Shania Twain's songs made her "want to just run around the block four times and daydream about everything".[16] She spent her weekends performing at local festivals, fairs, coffeehouses, karaoke contests, garden clubs, Boy Scout meetings and sporting events.[3][4][17] At the age of eleven, after many failed attempts,[18] Swift won a local talent competition by singing a rendition of LeAnn Rimes's "Big Deal", and was given the opportunity to appear as the opening act for Charlie Daniels at a Strausstown amphitheater.[14] This growing ambition began to isolate Swift from her middle school peers.[1]
After watching a Behind the Music episode about Faith Hill, Swift felt sure that she needed to go to Nashville, Tennessee to pursue a music career.[19] At the age of eleven, she traveled with her mother to Nashville for spring break to leave a demo of Dolly Parton and Dixie Chicks karaoke covers with record labels along Music Row.[20] She received label rejections and realized that "everyone in that town wanted to do what I wanted to do. So, I kept thinking to myself, I need to figure out a way to be different".[21] At the age of twelve, Swift was shown by a computer repairman how to play three chords on a guitar, inspiring her to write her first song, "Lucky You".[22] She had previously won a national poetry contest with a poem entitled "Monster in My Closet" but now began to focus on songwriting.[23] In 2003, Swift and her parents started working with New York-based music manager Dan Dymtrow. With Dymtrow's help, Swift modelled for Abercrombie and Fitch as part of their "Rising Stars" campaign, had an original song included in a Maybelline Cosmetics compilation CD and took meetings with major record labels.[24] After performing original songs at an RCA Records showcase, the eighth-grader was given an artist development deal and began making frequent trips to Nashville with her mother.[25]
When Swift was fourteen, her father transferred to the Nashville office of Merrill Lynch and the family relocated to a lakefront house in Hendersonville, Tennessee.[1] Swift later described this as "an incredible sacrifice" for her family to make.[20] "My parents saw that I was so obsessed, that I wasn't going to drop it, that it wasn't some adolescent phase."[26] In Tennessee, she attended Hendersonville High School for her freshman and sophomore years.[27] Later, to accommodate her touring schedule, Swift transferred to the Aaron Academy, a private Christian school which offered homeschooling services. She earned her high school diploma in 2008, having completed her final two years of course work in twelve months.[28][29]
Music career2004–08: Career beginnings and Taylor Swift
Swift moved to Nashville at the age of fourteen. As part of her artist development deal with RCA Records, she had writing sessions with experienced Music Row songwriters such as Troy Verges, Brett Beavers, Brett James, Mac McAnally and The Warren Brothers.[30][31] She eventually formed a lasting working relationship with Liz Rose. Swift saw Rose performing at an RCA songwriter event and suggested that they write together.[32] They began meeting for two-hour writing sessions every Tuesday afternoon after school.[33] Rose has said that the sessions were "some of the easiest I've ever done. Basically, I was just her editor. She'd write about what happened in school that day. She had such a clear vision of what she was trying to say. And she'd come in with the most incredible hooks".[34] Swift also began recording demos with producer Nathan Chapman.[32] After performing at a BMI Songwriter's Circle showcase at The Bitter End, New York,[31] Swift became the youngest songwriter ever hired by the Sony/ATV Tree publishing house.[35] Swift left RCA Records when she was fifteen; the company wanted her to record the work of other songwriters and wait until she was eighteen to release an album, but she felt ready to launch her career with her own material.[18][36] She also parted ways with manager Dan Dymtrow, who later took legal action against Swift and her parents.[24] "'I genuinely felt that I was running out of time," Swift later recalled. "I wanted to capture these years of my life on an album while they still represented what I was going through."[37] At an industry showcase at Nashville's Bluebird Cafe in 2005, Swift caught the attention of Scott Borchetta, a DreamWorks Records executive who was preparing to form his own independent record label, Big Machine Records. She became one of the label's first signings, with her father purchasing a three per cent stake in the fledgling company at an estimated cost of $120,000.[38][39] As an introduction to the country music business, Borchetta arranged for Swift to intern as an artist escort at the CMA Music Festival.[40]
Taylor Swift performing at the Maverick Saloon & Grill in Santa Maria, California in 2006
Swift began working on her eponymous debut album shortly after signing her record deal. After experimenting with veteran Nashville producers, Swift persuaded Big Machine to hire her demo producer Nathan Chapman. It was his first time to record a studio album but Swift felt they had the right "chemistry".[18] Swift wrote three of the album's songs alone, including two singles, and co-wrote the remaining eight with writers such as Liz Rose, Robert Ellis Orrall and Angelo Petraglia.[41] Musically, the album has been described as "a mix of trad-country instruments and spry rock guitars".[42] Taylor Swift was released in October 2006. The New York Times described it as "a small masterpiece of pop-minded country, both wide-eyed and cynical, held together by Ms. Swift's firm, pleading voice."[43] The New Yorker's Sasha Frere-Jones described the sixteen-year-old Swift as a "prodigy". He noted that "Our Song" "stop[ed] me in my tracks" and praised the lyrics: "He's got a one-hand feel on the steering wheel, the other on my heart".[44] Rolling Stone described Swift as "bright-eyed but remarkably seasoned", and admired "Our Song"'s "insanely hooky sing-song melody that's as Britney as it is Patsy".[42]
Taylor Swift performing at Yahoo! HQ in Sunnyvale, California in 2007
Big Machine Records was still in its infancy upon the release of the lead single "Tim McGraw" in June 2006, and Swift and her mother helped "stuff the CD singles into envelopes to send to radio".[45] She spent much of 2006 promoting Taylor Swift in a radio tour and later commented, "Radio tours for most artists last six weeks. Mine lasted six months."[18] Swift baked cookies and painted canvases to gift to radio station programmers who played her music.[46] She made many television appearances, including on the Grand Ole Opry,[47] Good Morning America,[48] and TRL.[49] Swift, a self-described "kid of the internet", used Myspace to build a fanbase.[50] This was, at the time, "revolutionary in country music".[51] Borchetta has said that his decision to sign a sixteen-year-old singer-songwriter initially raised eyebrows among his record industry peers but Swift tapped into a previously unknown market: teenage girls who listen to country music.[51] Following "Tim McGraw", four further singles were released throughout 2007 and 2008: "Teardrops on My Guitar", "Our Song", "Picture to Burn" and "Should've Said No". All were highly successful on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart, with "Our Song" and "Should've Said No" both reaching number one. "Our Song" made Swift the youngest person to single-handedly write and sing a number one country song.[52] "Teardrops on My Guitar" became a minor pop hit; it reached number thirteen on the Billboard Hot 100.[53] The album sold 39,000 copies during its first week of release[54] and, as of March 2011, has sold over 5.5 million copies worldwide.[55] Swift also released a holiday album, Sounds of the Season: The Taylor Swift Holiday Collection, in October 2007 and an EP, Beautiful Eyes, in July 2008.[56][57]
Swift toured extensively in support of Taylor Swift. In addition to her own material, Swift played covers of songs by Beyoncé, Rihanna, John Waite, Lynyrd Skynyrd and Eminem.[58][59][60] She conducted meet-and-greet sessions with fans before and after her concerts; these lasted for up to four hours.[61] As well as festival and theater dates, Swift performed as an opening act for several country artists' concert tours. In late 2006, she opened for Rascal Flatts on the final nine dates of their Me & My Gang Tour, after the previous supporting act Eric Church was fired.[48] Swift later sent Church her first gold record with a note: "Thanks for playing 'too long' and 'too loud' on the Flatts tour. I sincerely appreciate it. Taylor".[62] In 2007, she served as the opening act on twenty dates for George Strait's tour,[63] several dates on Kenny Chesney's Flip-Flop Summer Tour,[64] selected dates on Brad Paisley's Bonfires & Amplifiers Tour[65] and several dates for Tim McGraw and Faith Hill's joint Soul2Soul II Tour.[66] Swift again opened for Rascal Flatts on their Still Feels Good Tour in 2008.[67] Swift and Alan Jackson were jointly named the Nashville Songwriters Association's Songwriter/Artist of the Year in 2007, with Swift becoming the youngest person ever to be honored with the title.[68] She also won the Country Music Association's Horizon Award for Best New Artist,[69] the Academy of Country Music Awards's Top New Female Vocalist award[70] and the American Music Awards's Favorite Country Female Artist honor.[71] She was also nominated for a 2008 Grammy Award in the category of Best New Artist, but lost to Amy Winehouse.[72]
2008–10: Fearless, VMA controversy and Grammy backlash:
Swift's second studio album, Fearless, was released in November 2008. Swift wrote seven of the album's songs alone, including two singles, and co-wrote the remaining six with songwriters Liz Rose, John Rich, Colbie Caillat and Hillary Lindsey.[73] She co-produced the album with Nathan Chapman.[73] Musically, it has been said that the record is characterized by "loud, lean guitars and rousing choruses", with the occasional "bit of fiddle and banjo tucked into the mix".[74] The New York Times described Swift as "one of pop's finest songwriters, country's foremost pragmatist and more in touch with her inner life than most adults".[75] The Village Voice felt she displayed "preternatural wisdom and inclusiveness", "masterfully avoiding the typical diarist's pitfalls of trite banality and pseudo-profound bullshit".[76] Rolling Stone described her as "a songwriting savant with an intuitive gift for verse-chorus-bridge architecture" whose "squirmingly intimate and true" songs seemed to be "literally ripped from a suburban girl's diary".[74] Music critic Robert Christgau characterized Swift as "an uncommonly-to-impossibly strong and gifted teenage girl".[77] Swift promoted Fearless heavily upon its release. An episode of The Ellen DeGeneres Show was dedicated to the album launch and Swift appeared on many other chat shows.[51][78] She communicated with fans using social media platforms such as Twitter and personal video blogs.[51] The lead single from the album, "Love Story", was released in September 2008 and became the second best-selling country single of all time, peaking at number four on the Billboard Hot 100 chart.[79] Four more singles were released throughout 2008 and 2009: "White Horse", "You Belong with Me", "Fifteen" and "Fearless". "You Belong with Me" was the album's highest-charting single, peaking at number two on the Billboard Hot 100.[80] The album debuted at number one on the Billboard 200 Album Chart with sales of 592,304 and has since sold over 8.6 million copies worldwide.[81] It was the top-selling album of 2009 and brought Swift much crossover success.[82]
Swift performing during the Fearless Tour in 2010
Swift carried out her first headlining tour in support of Fearless. As part of the 105-date Fearless Tour, Swift played 90 dates in North America, six dates in Europe, eight dates in Australia and one date in Asia.[83] She sang a cover of Justin Timberlake's "What Goes Around... Comes Around" nightly, intertwined with her own "You're Not Sorry".[84] Swift invited John Mayer, Faith Hill and Katy Perry to perform one-off duets with her at various dates during the North American tour, while Justin Bieber, Kellie Pickler and Gloriana were the support acts.[85] The tour was attended by more than 1.1 million fans and grossed over $63 million.[86] Taylor Swift: Journey to Fearless, a concert film, was aired on television and later released on DVD and Blu-ray.[87] Swift also performed as a supporting act for Keith Urban's Escape Together World Tour.[88] In addition to tour dates, the singer paid tribute to a number of fellow artists in televised performances. She performed a cover of Alan Jackson's "Drive (For Daddy Gene)" at the CMT Giants: Alan Jackson event, took part in a joint, televised concert with rock band Def Leppard in Nashville, and performed a cover of George Strait's "Run" at a televised ACM event honoring Strait as the Artist of the Decade.[89] Swift sang her song "Fifteen" with Miley Cyrus at the 51st Grammy Awards and performed a self-penned rap skit with T-Pain at the CMT Awards.[90] Swift also recorded a number of side-projects. She released a cover of Tom Petty's "American Girl" through Rhapsody in 2009[91] and made her stage entrance to Petty's recording of the song until 2013.[92] She contributed backing vocals to John Mayer's "Half of My Heart", a single featured on his fourth album.[93] She co-wrote and recorded "Best Days of Your Life" with Kellie Pickler[94] and co-wrote two songs for the Hannah Montana: The Movie soundtrack – "You'll Always Find Your Way Back Home" and "Crazier" – with Martin Johnson and Robert Ellis Orrall, respectively.[95] Swift also provided vocals for Boys Like Girls's "Two Is Better Than One", written by Martin Johnson.[96] She contributed two songs – including "Today Was a Fairytale" – to the Valentine's Day soundtrack[97] and recorded a cover of Better Than Ezra's "Breathless" for the Hope for Haiti Now album.[98]
Taylor Swift performing during the Fearless Tour in 2010
Swift became the first country music artist to win an MTV Video Music Award when "You Belong with Me" was named Best Female Video in 2009.[99] Her acceptance speech was interrupted by rapper Kanye West, who had been involved in a number of other award show incidents.[100] In the event's press room, Swift, a fan of West's music,[101] denied having "any hard feelings" towards him.[102][103] The incident received much media attention and inspired many Internet memes.[104] A few days later, Swift told an interviewer that West offered her a personal apology, which she accepted: "He was very sincere."[99] She refused to discuss the incident in subsequent interviews so as not to make a "bigger deal" of it: "It happened on TV, so everybody saw what happened ... It's not something I feel like we need to keep talking about."[105] It has been said that the incident and subsequent media attention turned Swift into "a bona-fide mainstream celebrity".[106]
Swift won four Grammy Awards in 2010, from a total of eight nominations.[107] Fearless was named Album of the Year and Best Country Album, while "White Horse" was named Best Country Song and Best Female Country Vocal Performance.[108] She was the youngest ever artist to win Album of the Year.[109] During the ceremony, Swift sang "Rhiannon" and "You Belong with Me" with Stevie Nicks. Her vocal performance received negative reviews and sparked a widespread media backlash.[106][110] Her vocals were described variously as "badly off-key", "strikingly bad" and "incredibly wretched".[111][112] While The New York Times found it "refreshing to see someone so gifted make the occasional flub" and described Swift as "the most important new pop star of the past few years",[109] music analyst Bob Lefsetz predicted that her career would end "overnight". He publicly appealed to Swift's father to hire a "crisis publicity agent" to manage the story because "Taylor's too young and dumb to understand the mistake she made".[113][114] Stevie Nicks, writing in Time, defended the singer: "Taylor reminds me of myself in her determination and her childlike nature. It's an innocence that's so special and so rare. This girl writes the songs that make the whole world sing, like Neil Diamond or Elton John ... The female rock-'n'-roll-country-pop songwriter is back, and her name is Taylor Swift. And it's women like her who are going to save the music business."[115] Fearless won many other accolades and has become the most awarded album in country music history.[116] Swift became the youngest ever artist and one of only six women to be named Entertainer of the Year by the Country Music Association.[117] Fearless also won the Association's Album of the Year award.[117] Swift was the youngest ever artist to win the Academy of Country Music's Album of the Year honor.[118] The American Music Awards honored Swift with Artist of the Year and Favorite Country Album plaudits.[119] She was awarded the Hal David Starlight Award by the Songwriters Hall of Fame[120] and was named Songwriter/Artist of the Year by the Nashville Songwriters Association.[121] Billboard named her 2009's Artist of the Year.[122] Swift was included in Time's annual list of the 100 Most Influential People in 2010.[123]
2010–12: Speak Now and world tour:
Swift released her third studio album, Speak Now, in October 2010. She wrote all fourteen songs alone and co-produced the record with longtime collaborator Nathan Chapman.[124] Musically, it has been said that the album "expands beyond country-pop to border both alternative rock and dirty bubblegum pop".[125] The New York Times described the album as savage, musically diverse and "excellent too, possibly her best".[124] The Village Voice remarked that the album demanded "a true appreciation of Swift's talent, which is not confessional, but dramatic: Like a procession of country songwriters before her, she creates characters and situations—some from life—and finds potent ways to describe them."[126] Music critic Robert Christgau found the album's songs "overlong and overworked" but remarked that "they evince an effort that bears a remarkable resemblance to care—that is, to caring in the best, broadest, and most emotional sense".[77] Rolling Stone described Swift as one of the best songwriters in "pop, rock or country": "Swift might be a clever Nashville pro who knows all the hitmaking tricks, but she's also a high-strung, hyper-romantic gal with a melodramatic streak the size of the Atchafalaya Swamp".[127] Swift carried out an extensive promotional campaign prior to Speak Now's release.[128] She appeared on various talk shows and morning shows, and gave free mini-concerts in unusual locations, including an open-decker bus on Hollywood Boulevard and a departure lounge at JFK airport.[129] She took part in a "guitar pull" alongside Kris Kristofferson, Emmylou Harris, Vince Gill and Lionel Richie at LA's Club Nokia; the musicians shared the stage and took turns introducing and playing acoustic versions of their songs to raise money for the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum.[130][131] The album's lead single, "Mine", was released in August 2010 and five further singles were released throughout 2010 and 2011: "Back to December", "Mean", "The Story of Us", "Sparks Fly" and "Ours".[132] Speak Now was a major commercial success, debuting at number one on the US Billboard 200 chart. Its opening sales of 1,047,000 copies made it the sixteenth album in US history to sell one million copies in a single week.[133] As of February 2012, Speak Now has sold over 5.7 million copies worldwide.[134][135]
Taylor Swift performing during the Speak Now World Tour in 2011
Swift toured throughout 2011 and early 2012 in support of Speak Now. As part of the thirteen-month, 111-date world tour, Swift played seven shows in Asia, twelve shows in Europe, 80 shows in North America and twelve shows in Australasia.[136] Swift invited many musicians to join her for one-off duets during the North American tour. Appearances were made by James Taylor, Jason Mraz, Shawn Colvin, Johnny Rzeznik, Andy Grammer, Tal Bachman, Justin Bieber, Selena Gomez, Nicki Minaj, Nelly, B.o.B, Usher, Flo Rida, T.I., Jon Foreman, Jim Adkins, Hayley Williams, Hot Chelle Rae, Ronnie Dunn, Darius Rucker, Tim McGraw and Kenny Chesney.[137][138] During the North American tour leg, Swift wrote different song lyrics on her left arm for each performance and has said that the lyrics should be viewed as a nightly "mood ring".[139][140] Swift performed many acoustic cover versions during her North American tour. In each city, she paid tribute to a homegrown artist.[141] She has said the cover versions allowed her to be "spontaneous" in an otherwise well-rehearsed show.[142] The tour was attended by over 1.6 million fans and grossed over $123 million.[136] Swift's first live album, Speak Now World Tour: Live, featuring all seventeen performances from the North American leg of the tour, was released in November 2011.[143]
Taylor Swift performing during the Speak Now World Tour in 2012
At the 54th Grammy Awards, Swift's song "Mean" won Best Country Song and Best Country Solo Performance.[144] She also performed the song during the ceremony. Bob Lefsetz, one of the most vocal critics of her 2010 Grammy performance, believes the song is addressed to him.[145][146] Lefsetz had previously been a supporter of the singer's career,[147] and Swift and Lefsetz had corresponded occasionally by email and telephone.[145] Time felt she "delivered her comeback on-key and with a vengeance"[148] while USA Today remarked that the criticism in 2010 seemed to have "made her a better songwriter and live performer".[149] Swift won various other awards for Speak Now. She was named Songwriter/Artist of the Year by the Nashville Songwriters Association in both 2010 and 2011.[150][151] She was named Entertainer of the Year by the Academy of Country Music in both 2011 and 2012[152] and was named Entertainer of the Year by the Country Music Association in 2011.[153] Swift was the American Music Awards's Artist of the Year in 2011, while Speak Now was named Favorite Country Album.[154] Billboard named Swift 2011's Woman of the Year.[155]
While Swift was completing her fourth album in the summer of 2012, James Taylor invited her to appear as a special guest during his Tanglewood set; they performed "Fire and Rain", "Love Story" and "Ours" together.[156] Taylor, who first met Swift when she was eighteen, has said that, "we just hit it off. I loved her songs, and her presence on stage was so great".[157][158] During this period, Swift also contributed two original songs to The Hunger Games soundtrack album. "Safe & Sound" was co-written and recorded with The Civil Wars and T-Bone Burnett.[159] John Paul White has said working with Swift was "a revelation ... It truly was a collaboration."[160] It was released as the album's lead single and, as of January 2013, has sold over 1.4 million copies in the United States.[161] It won Best Song Written For Visual Media at the 2013 Grammy Awards and was nominated for Best Original Song at the 70th Golden Globe Awards.[162] Swift's second contribution to the album, "Eyes Open", was written solely by the singer and produced by Nathan Chapman.[163] In addition, Swift contributed vocals to "Both of Us", a Dr. Luke-produced single from B.o.B's second album Strange Clouds.[164]
2012–present: Red and intense media scrutiny 
Taylor Swift performing in St. Louis during the 2013 Red Tour
Swift's fourth studio album, Red, was released in October 2012.[165] She wrote nine of the album's sixteen songs alone. The remaining seven were co-written with Max Martin, Liz Rose, Dan Wilson, Ed Sheeran and Gary Lightbody. Nathan Chapman served as the album's lead producer but Jeff Bhasker, Butch Walker, Jacknife Lee, Dann Huff and Shellback also produced individual tracks. Chapman has said he encouraged Swift "to branch out and to test herself in other situations".[166] Musically, while there is experimentation with heartland rock, dubstep and dance-pop, it is "sprinkled among more recognisably Swiftian fare".[167][168] Jon Caramanica of The New York Times placed Red at number two on his end-of-year list, characterizing it as the album on which Swift "stops pretending she’s anything but a pop megastar, one with grown-up concerns, like how two bodies speak to each other and how taste in records can be a stand-in for moral turpitude."[169] The Times praised her "sublime" lyrics, particularly those on the "brooding" "All Too Well".[170] Rolling Stone enjoyed "watching Swift find her pony-footing on Great Songwriter Mountain. She often succeeds in joining the Joni/Carole King tradition of stark-relief emotional mapping ... Her self-discovery project is one of the best stories in pop."[171]
As part of the Red promotional campaign, representatives from 72 worldwide radio stations were flown to Nashville during release week for individual interviews with Swift.[172] She also appeared on many television chat shows and performed at award ceremonies in the US, the UK, Germany, France, Spain and Australia.[173] The album's lead single, "We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together", became Swift's first number one on the US Billboard Hot 100 chart.[174] Three further singles have been released: "Begin Again" (for country radio), "I Knew You Were Trouble" and "22" (for pop and international radio). Red debuted at number one on the Billboard 200 with first-week sales of 1.21 million copies; this marked the highest opening sales in a decade and made Swift the first female to have two million-selling album openings.[175] As of May 2013, Red had sold over 5.2 million copies worldwide.[176] In her career, as of November 2012, she had sold in excess of 26 million albums and 75 million song downloads.[177]
The North American leg of Swift's Red Tour runs from March to September 2013. She is playing 66 dates across North America, including thirteen stadium shows.[178] She has invited special guests such as Patrick Stump of Fall Out Boy, Nelly, B.o.B, Train and Neon Trees to duet with her on various nights of the tour.[179] The Red Tour will visit stadiums across Australia in December 2013.[180] Swift has collaborated with a number of other artists in the Red era. She performed "As Tears Go By" with The Rolling Stones in Chicago as part of their 50 & Counting tour.[181] She provided guest vocals for a Tim McGraw song entitled "Highway Don't Care", featuring guitar work by Keith Urban; the trio performed the song live on two occasions.[182] She also joined Florida Georgia Line on stage during their set at the 2013 Country Radio Seminar to sing "Cruise".[183] Ed Sheeran, who features on Red and appears as a support act on the Red Tour, has revealed that the pair plan to write further material together while touring.[184] Swift won three MTV Europe Music Awards in 2012, including the honors for Best Female and Best Live Act.[185] She was named Best Female Country Artist at the 2012 American Music Awards.[186] The Nashville Songwriters Association's 2012 Songwriter/Artist Award went to Swift for the fifth year in a row.[187] "We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together" was nominated for Record of the Year at the 2013 Grammy Awards.[188]
In the Red era, Swift's dating life became the subject of intense media scrutiny. The New York Times asserted that Swift's "dating history has begun to stir what feels like the beginning of a backlash" and questioned whether Swift was in the midst of a "quarter-life crisis".[189] The Village Voice remarked: "From late-night monologues, to the kids on 4chan, her breakups have become her defining characteristic and easiest detraction ... There are some obvious reasons; she's young, she can be contentiously dramatic, she puts herself in the center of her stories, and obviously she's dated a lot of famous people in a relatively short amount of time. But none of that is exceptionally rare -- pop-stars have lead [sic] vogue, ecumenical lifestyles for a long time ... It should be a little bit uncomfortable that Swift's earnestness can be so easily discredited when plenty of other, more egregious songwriters are let off the hook ... It's really easy to dismiss a blonde girl trying to play by the rules."[190]
Swift began writing for her fifth album in July 2013. While she hopes to re-team with some past collaborators, she also has "a really long list of the people I admire and I would really love to go and contact ... I never want to make the same record twice. Why do it? What's the point? It's so overwhelming that when you're starting a project there are such endless possibilities if you're willing to evolve and experiment."[191]
Artistry Influences:
One of Swift's earliest musical memories is listening to her maternal grandmother, Marjorie Finlay (née Moehlenkamp), sing at church.[8][192] In her youth, Finlay was a recording star in Puerto Rico and performed in operas in Singapore.[3] As a very young child, Swift enjoyed Disney movie soundtracks: "My parents noticed that, once I had run out of words, I would just make up my own".[20][193] Later, her parents exposed her to artists including James Taylor, Simon & Garfunkel and Def Leppard.[194][195] Swift has said she owes her confidence to her mother, who helped her prepare for class presentations as a child.[196] She also attributes her "fascination with writing and storytelling" to her mother.[197] Swift enjoyed both reading and writing poetry and was particularly drawn to the works of Shel Silverstein and Dr. Seuss.[3][198] She remains interested "in any writing from a child's perspective" and has cited To Kill a Mockingbird as one of her favorite books.[46]
Shania Twain (left), Stevie Nicks (centre) and Carly Simon (right) have influenced Swift
Swift was introduced to country music by "the great female country artists of the '90s ... Shania, Faith, the Dixie Chicks".[58][199] She was drawn to both the sound and storytelling of country music.[200] Shania Twain, both as a songwriter and performer, was her biggest musical influence.[201] Faith Hill was Swift's childhood role model and she tried to copy "everything she said, did, wore".[202][203] Swift admired the Dixie Chicks's defiant attitude and their ability to play their own instruments.[3][204] The band's "Cowboy Take Me Away" was the first song Swift learned to play on the guitar.[205] She then began to explore the music of older country stars, including Patsy Cline, Loretta Lynn, Tammy Wynette and Dolly Parton.[3][206] Lynn's "Fist City" is one of Swift's favorite country songs.[3] She believes Parton is "an amazing example to every female songwriter out there".[203] Other mainstream country influences include Miranda Lambert,[207] Dwight Yoakam,[208] George Strait,[3] Garth Brooks,[58] Kenny Chesney,[203] Reba McEntire,[209] Alan Jackson,[3] Martina McBride,[210] LeAnn Rimes,[211] Tim McGraw[212] and Brad Paisley.[213] Swift also admires alt-country artists such as Ryan Adams,[214] Patty Griffin,[215] Lori McKenna[216] and Bon Iver.[217]
Swift has been influenced by many artists outside the country genre. As a pre-teen, she enjoyed bubblegum pop acts including Hanson and Britney Spears; she still has "unwavering devotion" for Spears.[218] In her high school years, Swift listened to emo bands such as Dashboard Confessional,[219] Fall Out Boy,[220] The All-American Rejects[221] and Jimmy Eat World.[222] She was also a fan of contemporary female singer-songwriters including Michelle Branch,[222] Pink,[223] Alanis Morissette,[224] Ashlee Simpson,[225] Kelly Clarkson,[226] Fefe Dobson[222] and Avril Lavigne.[226] Swift closely followed the musical supervision on the television dramas The O.C. and Grey's Anatomy, downloading "every" song featured.[217] She was a fan of hip hop music, particularly the rhyming patterns used by artists such as Eminem: "Pride [in a lifestyle] is something that both country and hip-hop share".[3] Swift also drew inspiration from the catalogues of veteran artists. She describes Stevie Nicks as a "hero" who "has inspired me in so many ways."[161][227] Tom Petty, she has said, "is on a pedestal for me".[12] She is "obsessed" with Sixties acts like The Shirelles, Doris Troy and The Beach Boys.[140][228] Influence also came from older female pop rock singers including Pat Benatar,[226][229] Melissa Etheridge,[229] Sarah McLachlan,[224] Shawn Colvin[230] and Linda Ronstadt.[231][232]
Swift lists Paul McCartney, Bruce Springsteen, Emmylou Harris, Kris Kristofferson and Carly Simon as her career role models: "They've taken chances, but they've also been the same artist for their entire careers."[230][233][234] McCartney, both as a Beatle and a solo artist, makes Swift feel "as if I've been let into his heart and his mind": "Any musician could only dream of a legacy like that."[235] She admires Springsteen because he is "so musically relevant after such a long period of time".[236] She aspires to be like Harris as she grows older: "It’s not about fame for her, it’s about music."[237] Swift says of Kristofferson: "He shines in songwriting ... He's just one of those people who has been in this business for years but you can tell it hasn't chewed him up and spat him out".[238] She admires Simon's "songwriting and honesty": "She's known as an emotional person but a strong person."[239]
Peer recognition: 
Taylor Swift speaking during a YouTube interview in 2011
Swift's work has received praise from veteran artists. Neil Young describes her as "a great writer": "I like Taylor Swift. I like listening to her. I kind of like watching her respond to all the attacks. I like the ways she's defining herself. So I keep my eye on it".[240][241] Stephen Stills has defended Swift's confessional writing style: “How many times do people want to make fun of [her] for writing a song about getting dumped? I’m sorry, that’s what you do as a songwriter ... Wear your heart on your sleeve, then just write about it. Fuck ‘em. If I was young, I would be one of Taylor Swift’s conquests because I would stalk her.”[242][243][244] James Taylor, who has performed with Swift on two occasions, has said that "we just hit it off. I loved her songs, and her presence on stage was so great".[157][158] Judy Collins points to Swift as an example of a current star who is continuing on the lineage of being an independent-minded artist.[245] Kris Kristofferson claims that "she blows me away. It's amazing to me that someone so young is writing such great songs. She's got a great career ahead of her".[246][247] Janis Ian notes that Swift "changed the face of music, songwriting and guitar playing for girls ... There is an authenticity there."[248] Stevie Nicks believes Swift writes "songs that make the whole world sing, like Neil Diamond or Elton John ... It's women like her who are going to save the music business".[115] She remarked that the younger singer's "Today Was A Fairytale" has "stayed in my heart forever. And it just reminds me of me in a lot of ways."[249] Steven Tyler of Aerosmith believes she is "beyond talented".[250] Jon Bon Jovi describes her as "the real deal in every way, shape and form. She's a writer, she's a singer, she's a beautiful girl ... Like, she's going to be around."[251] Dolly Parton is "extremely impressed with her, especially with her songwriting .... I'm real impressed with the depth of her sometimes. She's got the qualities that could last a long time".[252][253] Melissa Etheridge remarks: "I love her soul, her spirit. I think she’s going to surprise people and I think she’s going to be around for a long time."[254][255]
Swift has also received songwriting praise from contemporaries. John Mayer was a supporter of Swift's early career; the duo recorded a duet and performed in concert together on two occasions: "You could put her in a time machine in any era and she would have a hit record."[256] She has also received praise from Drake,[257] Alicia Keys,[258] Tegan and Sara,[259][260] Grimes,[261] Kesha,[262] Katy Perry,[263] Kelly Clarkson[264] and Lady Gaga.[265] Ryan Adams has said that "every tune of hers is like the one you wait a whole lifetime to write".[266] Kathleen Hanna is "totally into Taylor Swift. I think she has super-clever lyrics, and I love that she writes her own music."[267] Shirley Manson remarked that she is "exceedingly talented at songwriting ... She drew her own door and walked right through it. We should applaud her balls for bucking the system. That's what artists are supposed to do."[268] Lena Dunham, the creator and star of HBO's television series Girls, has described Swift as her "artistic kindred spirit."[269]
Lyrical themes and style:
Thematically, The Guardian has noted that Swift was "fantastically good at regarding teenage life with a kind of wistful, sepia-toned nostalgia" over the course of her first two albums.[270] New York Magazine has remarked that few singer-songwriters have written "great records so explicitly about their teens ... Her nearest antecedent might be sixties-era Brian Wilson, the one true adolescent auteur before she came along".[271] Comparisons have also been drawn with Janis Ian.[233] Fairytale imagery featured on Swift's second album, Fearless. She explored the disconnect "between fairy tales and the reality of love".[272][273] Her third and fourth albums addressed more adult relationships.[234] In addition to romance and love, Swift's songs have discussed parent-child relationships ("The Best Day", "Never Grow Up", "Ronan"), friendships ("Fifteen", "Breathe", "22"),[274][275] alienation ("The Outside", "A Place In This World", "Tied Together with a Smile", "Mean") and career ambitions ("Change", "Long Live", "The Lucky One").[276][277] Her defining quality as a songwriter, it has been said, is "a determination to register and hang onto fleeting feelings and impressions, a pre-emptive nostalgia for a present (and sometimes even a future) that she knows will some day be in the past".[278] Swift frequently includes "a tossed-off phrase to suggest large and serious things that won't fit in the song, things that enhance or subvert the surface narrative".[279] The New Yorker has said that her songs, "though they are not subversive, have a certain sophistication ... Sentimental songs are laced with intimations of future disillusionment".[280]
Structurally, Slate notes that Swift has "effortless, preternatural mastery of pop conventions: Very few songwriters can build better bridges than she does."[281] Rolling Stone has described her as "a songwriting savant with an intuitive gift for verse-chorus-bridge architecture".[282] The Village Voice has noted that Swift uses third-verse POV reversals frequently.[279] She has a tendency to use the same images repeatedly. In the words of The Guardian, "she spends so much time kissin' in the rain that it seems a miracle she hasn't developed trenchfoot".[270] However, "to Swift's credit, she explores new lyrical motifs over the course of [her fourth] album."[168] American Songwriter describes Swift as "a great songwriter, who writes with an unmatched and almost unnatural acuity ... Even her earliest material is characterized by thoughtful – perhaps meticulous – word choice and deliberate melodic construction, with nary a lazy rhyme or aimless tune to be found."[283][284] While reviews of Swift's work are "almost uniformly positive", The New Yorker has said she is generally portrayed "more as a skilled technician than as a Dylanesque visionary".[233]
"For a female to write about her feelings, and then be portrayed as some clingy, insane, desperate girlfriend in need of making you marry her and have kids with her, I think that's taking something that potentially should be celebrated — a woman writing about her feelings in a confessional way — that's taking it and turning it and twisting it into something that is frankly a little sexist."
— Swift in response to criticism of her songwriting[285]Swift uses autobiographical detail in her work.[286] Listening to music as a child, she felt confused "when I knew something was going on in someone's personal life and they didn't address it in their music".[287] The New York Times believes that "righting wrongs is Ms. Swift's raison d'être".[288] In her songs, Swift often addresses the "anonymous crushes of her high school years" and, more recently, fellow celebrities.[288] John Mayer, the presumed subject of "Dear John", has said the song "humiliated" him: "I think it's kind of cheap songwriting. I know she's the biggest thing in the world, and I'm not trying to sink anybody's ship, but I think it's abusing your talent to rub your hands together and go, 'Wait till he gets a load of this!'"[289] The Village Voice has downplayed this aspect of Swift's songwriting: "Being told What Songs Mean is like having a really pushy professor. And it imperils a true appreciation of Swift's talent, which is not confessional, but dramatic."[290] New York Magazine believes the media scrutiny over her decision to use autobiographical detail "is sexist, inasmuch as it’s not asked of her male peers": "It’s a relief to see Swift, the ur-nice-girl, refuse to give the mea culpa that many journalists she's talked to have sought."[291] The singer herself has said that all her songs are not factual[292] and are often based on observations.[293] Aside from her liner note clues, Swift tries not to talk specifically about song subjects "because these are real people. You try to give insight as to where you were coming from as a writer without completely throwing somebody under the bus."[294]
Musical and vocal style:
Swift's music contains elements of country, country pop, pop and pop rock.[295][295][296] She self-identifies as a country artist.[297] Rolling Stone asserts that, "she might get played on the country station, but she's one of the few genuine rock stars we've got these days".[298] Swift's own definition of country music "is really pretty simple. It's when someone sings about their life and what they know, from an authentic place ... One guy will write about how he grew up on a farm and fell in love and raised kids on that same farm. Some people sing about how, when they get sad, they go to the bar and drink whiskey. I write songs about how I can't seem to figure out relationships and how I'm fascinated by love".[297] She has said there will be "a huge temptation" to make an alt-country record as her career progresses.[43] The New York Times notes that, "There isn't much in Ms. Swift's music to indicate country – a few banjo strums, a pair of cowboy boots worn onstage, a bedazzled guitar – but there's something in her winsome, vulnerable delivery that's unique to Nashville."[299] The New Yorker believes she is "considered part of Nashville's country-pop tradition only because she writes narrative songs with melodic clarity and dramatic shape—Nashville's stock-in-trade."[300] The Guardian has said that Swift "cranks melodies out with the pitiless efficiency of a Scandinavian pop factory".[270]
Swift's voice has been described as "sweet but soft".[301] In studio recordings, the Los Angeles Times identifies Swift's "defining" vocal gesture as "the line that slides down like a contented sigh or up like a raised eyebrow, giving her beloved girl-time hits their air of easy intimacy".[125] Rolling Stone, in a Speak Now review, remarked: "Swift's voice is unaffected enough to mask how masterful she has become as a singer; she lowers her voice for the payoff lines in the classic mode of a shy girl trying to talk tough".[302] In another review of Speak Now, The Village Voice noted that her phrasing was previously "bland and muddled, but that's changed. She can still sound strained and thin, and often strays into a pitch that drives some people crazy; but she's learned how to make words sound like what they mean".[126]
In a live setting, Swift, according to The Hollywood Reporter, "does her best, but certainly doesn't have the pipes to go toe-to-toe with the likes of Christina Aguilera or Carrie Underwood".[301] Her live vocals have been described as "flat", "thin, and sometimes as wobbly as a newborn colt".[303][304] However, Swift has received praise for refusing to correct her pitch with Auto-Tune.[305][306][307] In an interview with The New Yorker, Swift characterized herself primarily as a songwriter: "I write songs, and my voice is just a way to get those lyrics across".[1][308] Scott Borchetta of Big Machine Records has conceded that Swift is "not the best technical singer" but describes her as the "best communicator that we've got".[309] Swift's vocal presence is something that concerns her and she has "put a lot of work" into improving it.[310] It was reported in 2010 that she continues to take vocal lessons.[311][312] She has said that she only feels nervous performing "if I'm not sure what the audience thinks of me, like at award shows".[313]
Public image: 
Taylor Swift at the 2010 Time 100 Gala, where she was honored
Swift has high Q Score and Davie-Brown Index ratings, reflecting a high level of public awareness (90 percent) and popularity (80 percent) in the United States.[314] The singer considers it her "responsibility" to be conscious of her influence on young fans.[315] A Rolling Stone journalist who profiled Swift in 2009 remarked upon her polite manners: "If this is Swift's game face, it must be tattooed on because it never drops".[46][316] In 2012, Rolling Stone remarked upon Swift's "ease with glad-handing ... it's not hard to imagine her running for office someday"[317] while The Hollywood Reporter referred to her as "the Best People Person Since Bill Clinton".[318] It has been said that she is "the kind of driven, intensely ambitious person who’d thrive regardless of her profession".[319] A 2012 Vogue cover story described Swift as "clever and funny and occasionally downright bawdy" in person.[320] Grantland describes Swift as "dorky" and "openly neurotic in a way you'd never see from a blonde country princess like Faith Hill or Carrie Underwood. She is more like Diane Keaton in Annie Hall: overly gracious and eager to please but full of a nonstop, nervous, fluttering energy".[321] There has been much media commentary about Swift's surprised reactions when she is recognized at award ceremonies.[322][323] Swift laughingly noted that "people make so much fun of me". Although she sometimes tries to act blasé, "it's just hard when you get excited about stuff. It's like, if you win an award, isn't that crazy? ... How do you sit there and be like 'Oh, another Grammy. I guess I'm gonna get that now'?"[324]
In the early years of her career, Swift's signature look consisted of sundresses and cowboy boots.[325][326] This fashion style is still copied by many of the young fans who attend her concerts.[325][327] At formal events, Swift became known for "sparkly, beaded dresses".[325] Her naturally curly hairstyle is replicated by fans, and Swift has remarked: "I remember straightening my hair because I wanted to be like everybody else, and now the fact that anybody would emulate what I do? It's just funny."[327] She was asked by Vogue to cut bangs for a cover shoot in late 2011, and now straightens her hair.[328] Swift favors retro style and it has been said that she has the look of "a nineteen-thirties movie siren ... red lipstick, thick mascara."[329][330] She was named an Icon of American Style by Vogue in 2011.[331] She has named Françoise Hardy, Jane Birkin, Brigitte Bardot, and Audrey Hepburn as her own style inspirations.[332]
Product endorsements:
While promoting her self-titled debut record, Swift appeared as a spokesmodel for l.e.i. jeans and as the face of Verizon Wireless' Mobile Music campaign.[333][334] In the Fearless era, she launched a l.e.i. sundress range at Wal-Mart,[335] and designed American Greetings cards and Jakks Pacific dolls.[336][337] She became a spokesperson for the NHL's Nashville Predators and Sony Cyber-shot digital cameras.[338][339] She performed in a commercial for the Band Hero video game, with Rivers Cuomo, Pete Wentz and Travis Barker appearing as her backing band.[340] In the Speak Now era, Swift became a CoverGirl spokesmodel,[341] launched two Elizabeth Arden fragrances, Wonderstruck and Wonderstruck Enchanted, and released a special edition of her album through Target.[342]
While promoting her fourth album Red, Swift offered exclusive album promotions through Target,[343] Papa John's[172] and Walgreens.[344] She became a spokesmodel for Diet Coke and Keds sneakers,[345] released her third Elizabeth Arden fragrance entitled Taylor by Taylor Swift, and continued her partnerships with Sony Electronics and American Greetings. She also maintains an unofficial brand tie-in with Ralph Lauren.[346]
Acting career: 
Taylor Swift at the premiere of Hannah Montana: The Movie in 2009
Swift made her acting debut in a 2009 episode of CBS's CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, playing a rebellious teenager.[347] The New York Times noted that the character allowed Swift to be "a little bit naughty, and credibly so".[348] Rolling Stone felt she "held her own" and "does a good job with the script"[349] while the Chicago Tribune said she "acquits herself well".[350] Later that year, Swift both hosted and performed as the musical guest for an episode of Saturday Night Live.[351] Entertainment Weekly described her as "this season's best Saturday Night Live host so far", noting that she "was always up for the challenge, seemed to be having fun, and helped the rest of the cast nail the punchlines". Proving "admirably resilient in a wide variety of sketch roles", "Swift inspired more of a female, girly-in-the-best-sense sensibility in SNL than it's shown since the Tina Fey-Amy Poehler days".[352]
Swift made her feature film acting debut in the 2010 ensemble comedy Valentine's Day, playing the ditzy Valley girlfriend of a high school jock.[353] The Los Angeles Times felt the performance suggested "serious comedic potential"[354] while the San Francisco Chronicle found her "very funny".[355] Time remarked that Swift portrayed her character "rather charmingly";[356] The Boston Globe described her as "adorably dorky".[357] Salon asserted that she was "one of the few actors not wasted in "Valentine's Day". Her overgrown-pixie look and odd, widely set eyes lend her a little bit of Marilyn and a little bit of Lucille Ball: She's Taylor-made for comic greatness."[358] However, Variety found her "entirely undirected ... she needs to find a skilled director to tamp her down and channel her obviously abundant energy".[359] The Daily News described her performance as "painfully clunky" while Slant Magazine found her "unwatchable".[360][361] In 2012, Swift voiced the character of Audrey, a tree lover, in the animated film The Lorax.[362] In May 2013, Swift made a brief cameo on the sitcom New Girl as Elaine, a woman who attends the wedding of a former lover; during the service, the groom declares his love for Elaine and they leave the ceremony together to elope.[363][364]
Philanthropy:
Swift's philanthropic efforts have been recognised by the Do Something Awards,[365] The Giving Back Fund[366] and the Tennessee Disaster Services.[367] In 2012, Michelle Obama presented Swift with The Big Help Award for her "dedication to helping others" and "inspiring others through action".[368] Also that year, Kerry Kennedy of the Robert F. Kennedy Center for Justice and Human Rights presented Swift with the Ripple of Hope Award because of her "dedication to advocacy at such a young age ... Taylor is just the kind of woman we want our daughters to be."[369][370]
Swift is a supporter of arts education. In 2010, she donated $75,000 to Nashville's Hendersonville High School to help refurbish the school auditorium's sound and lighting systems.[371] In 2012, she pledged $4 million to fund the building of a new education center at the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum in Nashville.[372] The 7,500-square-foot building is scheduled to open in 2014 and will facilitate new programs and workshops for teenagers and senior citizens.[373][374] The space will include three classrooms and an exhibit space, and will house interactive activities such as a musical petting zoo and a "wet" classroom space to make concert posters and other art projects.[375] Museum officials have decided to name it The Taylor Swift Education Center and the singer will be involved in an advisory capacity.[376] Also in 2012, Swift partnered with textbook rental company Chegg to donate $60,000 to the music departments of six US colleges.[377][378]
Swift promotes children's literacy. In 2009, she donated $250,000 to various schools around the country that she had either attended or had other associations with. The money was used to buy books, fund educational programs and help pay teachers' salaries.[379] In 2010, she took part in a live webcast, Read Now! with Taylor Swift, broadcast exclusively in US schools to celebrate Scholastic's Read Every Day campaign.[380][381] In 2011, Swift donated 6,000 Scholastic books to Reading Public Library, Pennsylvania[382] and, in 2012, she donated 14,000 books to Nashville Public Library, Tennessee.[383] Most of the books were placed in circulation; the rest were gifted to children from low-income families, preschools and daycare centers.[383] In 2012, she co-chaired the National Education Association's Read Across America campaign and recorded a PSA encouraging children to read.[384] Also in 2012, Swift promoted the "power of reading" in a second live Scholastic webcast, broadcast directly to US classrooms.[385] In 2013, through the Reach Out and Read initiative, she donated 2,000 Scholastic books to the Reading Hospital Child Health Center's early literacy program.[386]
Throughout her career, Swift has donated money to help victims of natural disasters. In 2008, she donated the proceeds from her merchandise sales at the Country Music Festival to the Red Cross's disaster relief fund.[387] Later that year, she donated $100,000 to the Red Cross to help the victims of the Iowa flood of 2008.[388] In 2009, Swift supported the Victorian Bushfire Appeal by joining the lineup at Sydney's Sound Relief concert,[389] reportedly making the biggest contribution of any artist to the Australian Red Cross.[390] In 2010, she took part in the Hope for Haiti telethon; she performed and answered phone calls from viewers wishing to donate money.[391] She also recorded a song for the Hope for Haiti Now album.[392] In response to the May 2010 Tennessee floods, Swift donated $500,000 during a telethon hosted by WSMV.[393] Later that year, she donated $100,000 to help rebuild a playground in Hendersonville, Tennessee which was damaged by floodwater.[394] In 2011, Swift used the final dress rehearsal for the North American leg of her Speak Now tour as a benefit concert for victims of recent tornadoes in the United States, raising more than $750,000.[395] She also donated $250,000 to Alabama football coach Nick Saban's charity, Nick's Kids, to aid in the tornado relief efforts of West Alabama.[396] In 2012, Swift supported Architecture for Humanity's Restore the Shore MTV telethon in the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy.[397]
Swift opposes LGBT discrimination. Following the 2008 murder of Larry King, she recorded a Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network PSA to combat hate crimes.[398] On the first anniversary of King's death, Swift told Seventeen that her parents taught her "never to judge others based on whom they love, what color their skin is, or their religion".[399] In 2011, the music video for Swift's anti-bullying song "Mean" dealt in part with homophobia in high schools; the video was later nominated for an MTV VMA social activism award.[400][401][402] The New York Times believes she is part of "a new wave of young (and mostly straight) women who are providing the soundtrack for a generation of gay fans coming to terms with their identity in a time of turbulent and confusing cultural messages".[400]
The singer is involved with a number of charities which provide services to sick children. In 2008, she donated a pink Chevy pick-up truck to the Victory Junction Gang Camp; the truck is used to transport sick children from the airport to the camp.[403] In 2009, after performing at the BBC Children in Need annual telethon, she donated $20,000 to the cause.[404] In 2011, as the Academy of Country Music's Entertainer of the Year, Swift donated $25,000 to St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, Tennessee. This figure was matched by the Academy.[405] In 2012, Swift participated in the Stand Up to Cancer telethon, performing "Ronan", a song she wrote in memory of a four-year-old boy who died of neuroblastoma. The song was made available for digital download, with all proceeds donated to cancer-related charities.[406] Swift has met with many sick fans through the Make-A-Wish Foundation.[407][408][409][410] She has also made private visits to hospitals such as St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, the Walter Reed Army Medical Center, the Ronald McDonald House, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Children's Hospital & Medical Center and Vanderbilt Children's Hospital.[411][412][413][414][415][416]
Swift has encouraged young people to volunteer in their local community as part of Global Youth Service Day[417] and has promoted The @15 Fund, a social change platform underwritten by Best Buy, which gives teenagers the opportunity to direct the company's philanthropy.[418] In 2007, she launched a campaign to protect children from online predators, in partnership with the Tennessee Association of Chiefs of Police.[419] Also in 2007, she supported an Allstate campaign which promotes safe teenage driving.[420] In 2009, Swift recorded a Sound Matters PSA to make listeners aware of the importance of listening "responsibly".[421] She appeared in a Got Milk? campaign in 2010.[422] Swift has donated auctionable items to a large number of charities, including the Elton John AIDS Foundation,[423] the UNICEF Tap Project,[424] Oxfam International,[425] Habitat for Humanity,[426] MusiCares[427] and Feeding America.[428] She has also performed at a number of benefit concerts, including for the Food Bank For New York City,[429] the Reading, Writing & Rhythm Foundation,[430] Christmas for Kids[431] and Shriners Hospitals for Children.[432]
A view of the harbor in Watch Hill, Rhode Island, where Swift owns a vacation home
Swift lives between a three-bedroom duplex penthouse in Midtown Nashville, Tennessee[1][433] and a three-bedroom cottage in Beverly Hills, California.[434] She owns an eight-bedroom vacation home in coastal Watch Hill, Rhode Island.[435] In addition, Swift purchased her family a four-bedroom mansion in Belle Meade, Tennessee.[436] According to Forbes's Celebrity 100 list, released annually in the month of May, Swift earned $18 million in 2009,[437] $45 million in 2010,[438] $45 million in 2011,[439] $57 million in 2012[440] and $55 million in 2013.[441]
Relationships:
Swift dated singer Joe Jonas from July to October 2008,[442][443] and actor Taylor Lautner from October to December 2009.[444][445] She was romantically linked to musician John Mayer from late 2009 until early 2010.[446][447][448][449] She dated actor Jake Gyllenhaal from October to December 2010.[450][451] Following their break-up, they were seen together in January and February 2011.[452][453] Swift dated political heir Conor Kennedy from July to September 2012.[454][455] She dated One Direction singer Harry Styles from October 2012 to January 2013.[456][457]
Politics:
Swift says she registered to vote on her eighteenth birthday.[458][459] During the 2008 presidential campaign, she supported the Every Woman Counts campaign, aimed at engaging women in the political process, and was one of many country stars to record a public service announcement for the Vote (For Your) Country campaign.[460] She stated: "I don't think it's my job to try and influence people which way they should vote."[3] Following President Obama's inauguration, she told Rolling Stone that she supported the president: "I've never seen this country so happy about a political decision in my entire time of being alive. I'm so glad this was my first election."[461]
In 2010, former U.S. President George H. W. Bush attended the taping of a Swift television special in Kennebunkport, Maine,[462] and later described Swift as "unspoiled" and "very nice".[463] In 2012, Swift was presented with a Kids' Choice Award in recognition of her charitable work by Michelle Obama, who praised her as someone who "has rocketed to the top of the music industry but still keeps her feet on the ground, someone who has shattered every expectation of what a 22-year old can accomplish".[464] Swift later described the First Lady as "a role model".[465] In a 2012 interview, Swift remarked that, although she tries to keep herself “as educated and informed as possible”, she doesn’t “talk about politics because it might influence other people."[466] She has spoken of her interest in American history and has read books about Abraham Lincoln, John Adams, the Founding Fathers and Ellis Island.[467]
Swift is a friend of the Kennedy family. "She's a great friend of all of ours," Rory Kennedy has said. "She's awesome and we love her".[468] The singer has spoken of her admiration for Ethel Kennedy[469] and, when asked about her friendship with Swift, Ethel replied, "Oh, she is amazing! Such good company." Rory has said, "There is a mutual admiration society between my mother and Taylor Swift and I just love it! I think it says so much about Taylor – she has that ability to connect and cross generations ... She's terrific and such a great role model for young girls, as well as for all women, really ... She's just so curious and interested".[470]
Awards and nominations:
Main article: List of awards and nominations received by Taylor Swift:
Swift has been the recipient of seven Grammy Awards, eleven American Music Awards, seven Country Music Association Awards, six Academy of Country Music Awards, and twelve Billboard Music Awards. As a songwriter, she has been honored by the Nashville Songwriters Association and the Songwriters Hall of Fame.
Discography:
Main article: Taylor Swift discography
Taylor Swift (2006)
Fearless (2008)
Speak Now (2010)
Red (2012)
Concert tours:
Fearless Tour (2009–10)
Speak Now World Tour (2011–12)
Red Tour (2013)
Filmography:
Film Year Title Role Notes
2009 Jonas Brothers: The 3D Concert Experience Herself Cameo
2009 Hannah Montana: The Movie Herself Cameo
2010 Valentine's Day Felicia Film debut
2012 Lorax, TheThe Lorax Audrey Voice only
Television Year Title Role Notes
2009 CSI: Crime Scene Investigation Haley Jones Episode: "Turn, Turn, Turn"
2009 Saturday Night Live Herself Host/musical guest
2011 T.I. & Tiny: The Family Hustle Herself Episode: "America's Sweetheart"
2013 New Girl Elaine Episode: "Elaine's Big Day"
Categories: Taylor Swift, 1989 births, 21st-century American actresses, 21st-century American singers, Actresses from Pennsylvania, American child singers, American country banjoists, American country singer-songwriters, American female guitarists, American female pop singers, American female singer-songwriters, American film actresses, American pianists, American pop singer-songwriters, American television actresses, American ukulele players, American voice actresses, Big Machine Records artists, Child pop musicians, Grammy Award-winning artists, LGBT rights activists from the United States, Living people, Mezzo-sopranos, Musicians from Pennsylvania, People from Reading, Pennsylvania, People from Wyomissing, Pennsylvania, Songwriters from Pennsylvania.
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Reba McEntire
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Reba McEntire in April 2010
Background information
Birth name Reba Nell McEntire
Also known as Reba
Born (1955-03-28) March 28, 1955 (age 58)
Kiowa, Oklahoma, U.S.
Origin Chockie, Oklahoma, U.S.
Genres Country
Occupations Singer, songwriter, record producer, actress, television producer
Instruments Vocals, acoustic guitar
Years active 1974–present
Labels Mercury, MCA Nashville, Starstruck, Valory
Associated acts Dolly Parton, Red Steagall, Jacky Ward, Pake McEntire, Susie Luchsinger, Vince Gill, Linda Davis, Brooks & Dunn, Kelly Clarkson, Kenny Chesney, Justin Timberlake, Terri Clark
Reba Nell McEntire (born March 28, 1955) is an American country music artist and actress. She began her career in the music industry as a high school student singing in the Kiowa High School band,[1] on local radio shows with her siblings, and at rodeos. While a sophomore in college, she performed the National Anthem at the National Rodeo in Oklahoma City and caught the attention of country artist Red Steagall. He brought her to Nashville, Tennessee, where she signed a contract with Mercury Records a year later in 1975. She released her first solo album in 1977 and released five additional studio albums under the label until 1983.
Signing with MCA Nashville Records, McEntire took creative control over her second MCA album, My Kind of Country (1984), which had a more traditional country sound and produced two number one singles: "How Blue" and "Somebody Should Leave". The album brought her breakthrough success, bringing her a series of successful albums and number one singles in the 1980s and 1990s. McEntire has since released 26 studio albums, acquired 40 number one singles, 14 number one albums, and 28 albums have been certified gold, platinum or multi-platinum in sales by the Recording Industry Association of America. She has sometimes been referred to as "The Queen of Country".[2] And she is one of the best-selling artists of all time, having sold more 80 million records worldwide.[3]
In the early 1990s, McEntire branched into film starting with 1990's Tremors. She has since starred in the Broadway revival of Annie Get Your Gun and in her television sitcom, Reba (2001–2007) for which she was nominated for the Golden Globe Award for Best Performance by an Actress in a Television Series–Musical or Comedy.[4]
Contents:
1 Early life
2 Music career
2.1 1976–83: Career launch at Mercury
2.2 1984–90: Breakthrough
2.3 1991: Aviation accident and For My Broken Heart
2.4 1992–96: Continued success
2.5 1997–98: What If It's You and "If You See Him"
2.6 1999–2001:So Good Together and Greatest Hits Vol. 3: I'm A Survivor
2.7 2003–07: Return to the music industry
2.8 2008–12: Move to Valory
3 Acting career
3.1 1990–99: Entrance into film and television
3.2 2000–07: Broadway and television series
3.3 2011—present: Return to television
4 Musical styles and legacy
5 Personal life
6 Awards
7 Discography
7.1 Studio albums
7.2 Other albums
8 Filmography
Early life:
Reba Nell McEntire was born on March 28, 1955, in McAlester, Oklahoma, to Jacqueline (née Smith; born November 6, 1927) and Clark Vincent McEntire (born November 30, 1927).[4] She was named for her maternal grandmother Reba Brassfield.[5] Her father and grandfather were both champion steer ropers and her father was a World Champion Steer Roper three times (1957, 1958, and 1961). Her mother originally had plans to become a country music artist but decided not to pursue that professionally and worked as a schoolteacher. Instead, McEntire's mother taught her children how to sing. McEntire also taught herself how to play the guitar. On car rides home from her father's rodeo trips, the McEntire siblings were taught songs and learned their own harmonies, eventually forming a vocal group called the "Singing McEntires". Consisting of her brother, Pake, and her younger sister, Susie (her older sister, Alice did not participate), and McEntire played guitar in the group and wrote the all the songs, the group sang at rodeos and recorded "The Ballad of John McEntire" together. Released on an indie label, Boss, the song pressed one thousand copies.[4] In 1974, McEntire attended Southeastern Oklahoma State University and intended on becoming an elementary school teacher (eventually graduating December 16, 1976[4]). While not attending school, she also continued to sing locally. That same year she was also hired to perform the national anthem at the National Rodeo in Oklahoma City. Country artist Red Steagall (who was also performing that day) was impressed by her vocal ability and later agreed to help in making McEntire a country artist in Nashville, Tennessee. After recording a demo tape, she signed a recording contract with Mercury Records in 1975.[6]
Music career:
1976–83: Career launch at Mercury:
McEntire made her first recordings for Mercury January 22, 1976, when she cut her debut single. Upon its release that year, "I Don't Want to Be a One Night Stand" failed to become a major hit on the Billboard country music chart, peaking at No. 88 in May.[7] She completed her second recording session September 16, which included the production of her second single, "(There's Nothing Like The Love) Between a Woman and Man", which only reached No. 86 in March 1977. She recorded a third single that April, "Glad I Waited Just for You", which reached number 88 by August. That same month, Mercury issued her self-titled debut album.[4] The album was a departure from any of McEntire's future releases, as it resembled the material of Tanya Tucker and Tammy Wynette, according to Allmusic reviewer Greg Adams.[8] The album itself did not chart the Billboard Top Country Albums chart upon its release.[4][6] After releasing two singles with Jacky Ward ("Three Sheets in the Wind" b/w "I'd Really Love to See You Tonight"; and "That Makes Two of Us" at number 20 and number 26, respectively[7]), Mercury issued her second studio album in 1979, Out of a Dream. The album's cover of Patsy Cline's "Sweet Dreams" became McEntire's first Top 20 hit, reaching No. 19 on the Billboard country chart in November 1979.[4][7] In 1976 she made two albums listed under the genre of 'urban cowboy' instead of 'country.'
In 1980, "You Lift Me Up (To Heaven)" brought her to the Top 10 for the first time.[9] Her third studio album, Feel the Fire was released in October and spawned two additional Top 20 hit singles that year.[4] In September 1981, McEntire's fourth album, Heart to Heart was issued and became her first album to chart the Billboard Top Country Albums list, peaking at No. 42. Its lead single, "Today All Over Again" became a top five country hit.[4] The album received mainly negative reviews from critics. William Ruhlmann of Allmusic gave it two-and-a-half out of five stars, stating she did not get creative control of her music. Ruhlmann called "There Ain't No Love" "essentially a soft pop ballad".[10] Most of the album's material consisted of mainly country pop-styled ballads, which was not well liked by McEntire herself.[6] Her fifth album, Unlimited was issued in June 1982 and spawned her first Billboard Number One single in early 1983: "Can't Even Get the Blues" and "You're the First Time I've Thought About Leaving".[7] The following year her sixth album, Behind the Scene was released and was positively-received by music critics. In 1983, McEntire announced her departure from Mercury, criticizing the label's country pop production styles.[4]
1984–90: Breakthrough:
McEntire signed with MCA Nashville Records in 1984 and released her seventh studio album, Just a Little Love. Harold Shedd was originally the album's producer; however, McEntire rejected his suggestions towards country pop arrangements. It was instead produced by Norro Wilson, although the album still had a distinguishable country pop sound.[6] Dissatisfied with the album's sound, she went to MCA president, Jimmy Bowen, who told McEntire to find material that was best-suited to her liking. Instead of finding new material, she found previously-recorded country hits from her own record collection, which was then recorded for the album. The album's material included songs originally released as singles by Ray Price ("Don't You Believe Her", "I Want to Hear It from You"), Carl Smith ("Before I Met You"), Faron Young ("He's Only Everything") and Connie Smith ("You've Got Me [Right Where You Want Me"]).[11] The album spawned two number one singles: "How Blue" and "Somebody Should Leave". It was given positive reviews from critics, with Billboard Magazine praising McEntire as "the finest woman country singer since Kitty Wells" and Rolling Stone critics honoring her as one of their Top 5 favorite country artists. Upon its release, My Kind of Country became her highest-peaking album on the Top Country Albums chart, reaching No. No. 13. The album also included instruments such as a fiddle and pedal steel guitar, and was aimed more towards a traditional country sound. McEntire was later praised as a "new traditionalist", along with Ricky Skaggs and George Strait. That year, she won the Country Music Association Awards' Female Vocalist of the Year, her first major industry award. The album was certified Gold.[4][11]
In 1985, McEntire released her third MCA album, Have I Got a Deal for You, which followed the same traditional format as My Kind of Country.[12] It was the first album produced by McEntire and was co-produced with Jimmy Bowen. Like her previous release, the album received positive feedback, including Rolling Stone, which called it a "promising debut". The album's second single, "Only in My Mind" was entirely written by McEntire and reached number five on the Billboard country chart. On January 17, 1986, McEntire became a member of the Grand Ole Opry show in Nashville, Tennessee, and has been a member ever since.[13] In February 1986, McEntire's ninth studio album, Whoever's in New England was released. For this album, McEntire and co-producer Jimmy Bowen incorporated her traditional music style into a mainstream sound that was entirely different than anything she had previously recorded. Country Music: The Rough Guide called the production of the title track, "bigger and sentimentalism more obvious, even manipulative".[6] The title track peaked at number one on the Billboard Country Chart and won her a Grammy Award for Best Female Country Vocal Performance the following year.[7] In addition, the album became McEntire's first release to certify gold in sales by the Recording Industry Association of America (and was later certified Platinum). At the end of the year, McEntire won Entertainer of the Year from the Country Music Association, the highest honor in the awards show.[6]
Reba McEntire in Washington, D.C. (2005).
McEntire released a second album in 1986, What Am I Gonna Do About You. Allmusic critic William Ruhlmann was not overly pleased with album's production, saying that it lacked the features that had been set forth on Whoever's in New England. Rulhlmann criticized the title track for "something of the feel of 'Whoever's in New England' in its portrayal of a woman trying to recover from a painfully ended love affair".[14] The title track was the lead single from the release and was a number one single shortly after its release.[7] This album also spawned a second Number One in "One Promise Too Late". The following year, her first MCA compilation, Greatest Hits was released and became her first album to be certified platinum in sales, eventually certifying triple-platinum.[4] A twelfth studio album, The Last One to Know, was released in 1987. The emotions of her divorce from husband, Charlie Battles, were put into the album's material, according to McEntire. The title track from the release was a number one single in 1987 and the second single, "Love Will Find Its Way to You", also reached the top spot. In late 1987, McEntire released her first Christmas collection, Merry Christmas to You, which sold two million copies in the United States, certifying double Platinum.[9] The album included cover versions of "Away in a Manger", "Silent Night", and Grandpa Jones's "The Christmas Guest".[15]
Her thirteenth album, Reba, was issued in 1988 and was not well received by critics, who claimed she was moving farther away from her "traditional country" sound. Stereo Review disliked the album's contemporary style, stating, "After years of insisting that she'd stick to hard-core country 'because I have tried the contemporary-type songs, and it's not Reba McEntire—it's just not honest,' McEntire[...]has gone whole-hog pop. The album peaked at number one on the Billboard Top Country Albums chart and remained there for six consecutive weeks. Okay, so maybe that's not so terrible." Although it was reviewed poorly, the album itself was certified platinum in sales and produced two number one singles: "I Know How He Feels" and "New Fool at an Old Game".[7] In addition, the release's cover version of Jo Stafford's "A Sunday Kind of Love" became a Top 5 hit on the Billboard country music chart.[16] Also in 1988, McEntire founded Starstruck Entertainment, which controlled her management, booking, publishing, promotion, publicity, accounting, ticket sales, and fan club administration. The company would eventually expand into managing a horse farm, jet charter service, trucking, construction, and book publishing.
McEntire's fourteenth studio album, Sweet Sixteen, was released in May 1989; it spent sixteen weeks at number one on the Billboard Top Country Albums chart, while also becoming her first album to peak in the top 100 on the Billboard 200, reaching No. 78. The album was given positive reviews because unlike her previous studio album, the release, "welcomes the fiddles and steel guitars back as she returns to the neo-traditionalist fold", according to Allmusic, which gave the release four-and-a-half out of five stars. Reviewer William Ruhlmann found Sweet Sixteen to "double back to a formula that worked for her in the past". The lead single was a cover of The Everly Brothers' "Cathy's Clown", with McEntire's version reaching number one in July on the Billboard country music chart. Three more Top 10 hits followed from Sweet Sixteen: "Till Love Comes Again", "Little Girl", and "Walk On", at number four, seven and two, respectively.[7] In September she released Reba Live, her first live album, which originally certified gold but certified platinum ten years later.[17][4]
Sixteen months after the release of Sweet Sixteen and after giving birth to her son, McEntire transitioned into 1990 with the release of Rumor Has It. The album's "sound and production were almost entirely pop-oriented", according to Kurt Wolff of Country Music: The Rough Guide.[6] Although Rumor Has It was an attempt to receive critical praise, many reviewers found the album to be "predictable". Stereo Review mainly found the recording displeasing in some places, but the reviewer also believed she "still leaves most of the competition in the dust", calling the album "glorious". Rumor Has It eventually sold three million copies by 1999, certifying triple-platinum by that year. It was prefaced by the single "You Lie", which became her fifteenth number one single on the country chart.[7] In addition, the album's cover of Bobbie Gentry's 1969 hit "Fancy" and a new track, "Fallin' Out of Love", became Top 10 hits on the same Billboard country chart.[18]
1991: Aviation accident and For My Broken Heart:
While on tour for her 1990 album, McEntire lost eight members of her road band (Chris Austin, Kirk Cappello, Joey Cigainero, Paula Kaye Evans, Jim Hammon, Terry Jackson, Anthony Saputo, and Michael Thomas), plus pilot Donald Holmes and co-pilot Chris Hollinger, when their charter jet plane crashed near San Diego, California in the early morning of March 16, 1991. The accident occurred after McEntire's private performance for IBM executives the night before. The first plane was a Hawker Siddeley DH-125-1A/522 charter jet, believed to have taken off around 1:45 AM from the Brown Field Municipal Airport, located near the border of Mexico. After reaching an altitude of about 3,572 feet above sea level, the Hawker aircraft crashed on the side of Otay Mountain, located ten miles east of the airport, while the second plane (carrying her other band members) did not crash. The accident was believed to have occurred due to poor visibility near Otay Mountain, which was not considered "prohibitive" for flying. The news was reported nearly immediately to McEntire and her husband, who were sleeping at a nearby hotel. A spokeswoman for McEntire at the time stated in the Los Angeles Times that "she was very close to all of them. Some of them had been with her for years. Reba is totally devastated by this. It's like losing part of your family. Right now she just wants to get back to Nashville."[19]
McEntire dedicated her sixteenth album, For My Broken Heart, to her deceased road band. Released in October 1991, it contained songs of sorrow and lost love about "all measure of suffering",[20] according to Alanna Nash of Entertainment Weekly. Nash reported that McEntire "still hits her stride with the more traditional songs of emotional turmoil, above all combining a spectacular vocal performance with a terrific song on "Buying Her Roses", a wife's head-spinning discovery of her husband's other woman".[20] The release peaked at number one on the Billboard Top Country Albums chart, while also reaching number 13 on the Billboard 200,[21] and eventually sold four million copies. Its title track became McEntire's sixteenth number one, followed by "Is There Life Out There", which also reached number one on the Billboard country music chart.[4] The third single, "The Greatest Man I Never Knew" peaked in the Top 5 and her cover of Vicki Lawrence's "The Night the Lights Went Out in Georgia" reached No. 12.[7] "If I Had Only Known", a cut from this album, was later included in the soundtrack to the 1994 film 8 Seconds.[7]
1992–96: Continued success:
In December 1992, McEntire's seventeenth studio album, It's Your Call, was released. It became her first album to peak within the Billboard 200 Top 10, reaching number eight.[22] McEntire commented that the record was a "second chapter" to For My Broken Heart,[23] while music reviewers such as Alanna Nash of Entertainment Weekly disagreed, writing, "In truth, it isn't nearly as pessimistic as its predecessor—and unfortunately it isn't anywhere as involving." Nash called the album's title track—which peaked at number five on the Billboard Hot Country Singles & Tracks chart—"one of those moment-of-truth sagas at which McEntire excels. In the song, a wife answers the phone to find her husband's girlfriend on the other end and seizes the opportunity not only to inform her mate that she knows of his affair but to give him the ultimatum of choosing between the two. She's not the only one who's waitin' on the line, she sings, handing her husband the phone. It's your call."[24][25] Christopher John Farley of Time magazine wrote that the album ranged from being "relaxing" to "cathartic", and "these vocals from one of the best country singers linger in the mind".[26] The album's preceding singles—"The Heart Won't Lie" (a duet with then-labelmate Vince Gill) and "Take It Back"—were Top 10 hits on the Billboard country chart, reaching number one and number five respectively.[24] Like its preceding album, It's Your Call sold over a million copies, eventually certifying by the RIAA in sales of double-platinum.[27]
In October 1993, McEntire's third compilation album, Greatest Hits Volume Two was released, reaching number one and number five on the Billboard Top Country Albums and Billboard 200 charts respectively, selling 183,000 copies during Christmas week 1993.[28] Out of the ten tracks were two new singles: the first, "Does He Love You", was a duet with Linda Davis. The song later went on to reach number one on the Billboard Hot Country Singles & Tracks chart and win both women a Grammy for Best Country Collaboration with Vocals.[7] Its second single, "They Asked About You", was also a Top 10 hit. The additional eight songs were some of McEntire's biggest hit singles during a course of five years including "The Last One to Know", "I Know How He Feels", "Cathy's Clown", and "The Heart Won't Lie".[29] After originally selling two million copies upon its initial release (2× Multi-Platinum), Greatest Hits Volume Two would later certify at 5× Multi-Platinum by the RIAA in 1998.[30]
Her eighteenth studio release was 1994's Read My Mind. The album spawned five major hit singles onto the Billboard Country chart, including the number one single "The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter". The further releases ("Till You Love Me", "Why Haven't I Heard from You", and "And Still") became Top 10 singles on the same chart,[31] with "Till You Love Me" also reaching number 78 on the Billboard Hot 100, a chart that she had not previously entered.[7] The album itself reached number two on the both the Billboard 200 and Top Country Albums charts.[32] Charlotte Dillon of Allmusic gave the album four out of five stars, calling it "another wonderful offering of songs performed by the gifted country singer Reba McEntire". Dillon also felt that the album's material had "a little soul, a little swing, and some pop, too".[33] Entertainment Weekly's Alanna Nash also gave the album positive feedback, viewing the album to have "enough boiling rhythms and brooding melodies to reflect the anger and disillusionment of the middle class in the '90s", calling the track "She Thinks His Name Was John" to be the best example of that idea.[34] The song was eventually spawned as a single and was considered controversial for its storyline, which described a woman who contracts AIDS from a one-night stand.[35] Because of its subject, the song garnered less of a response from radio and peaked at number 15.[4] Read My Mind became another major seller for McEntire and her label, selling three million copies by 1995 and certifying at 3× Multi-Platinum from the RIAA.[36]
After many years of releasing studio albums of newly-recorded material, McEntire's nineteenth studio album, Starting Over (1995) was collection of her favorite songs originally recorded by others from the 1950s through the early 1980s. The album was made to commemorate twenty years in the music industry, but many music critics gave it a less positive response than her previous release.[37] Allmusic's Stephen Thomas Erlewine commented that although the album was considered a "rebirth" for McEntire, he thought that some tracks were recorded for merely "nothing more than entertainment".[38] The album paid tribute to many of McEntire's favorite artists and included cover versions of "Talking In Your Sleep" originally sung by Crystal Gayle, "Please Come to Boston", "Starting Over Again", cowritten by Donna Summer and originally a hit for Dolly Parton, "On My Own", and "By the Time I Get to Phoenix".[6] "On My Own" featured guest vocals from Davis, as well as Martina McBride and Trisha Yearwood.[7] Despite negative reviews, Starting Over was certified Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America within the first two months of its release,[39] but only one single—a cover of Lee Greenwood's "Ring on Her Finger, Time on Her Hands"—was a Top 10 hit single.[40]
1997–98: What If It's You and "If You See Him":
Reba McEntire's star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
McEntire made a major comeback into the music industry the following year with her twentieth studio album, What If It's You.[41] The album's lead single, "The Fear of Being Alone" reached number two on the country charts, and its further two singles ("How Was I to Know" and "I'd Rather Ride Around with You") reached number one and number two respectively.[4] The release garnered higher critical acclaim than Starting Over, with Thom Owens of Allmusic calling the album "nevertheless an excellent reminder of her deep talents as a vocalist".[42] MCA Nashville chairman Bruce Hinton told Billboard how pleased he was with McEntire's release, calling the album's ten tracks "powerful" and concluding by stating, "There are so many writers and so many great songs in Nashville, and Reba has collected her disproportionate share[...]She's country music's female artist of the 90's." What If It's You peaked at number one Top Country Albums and No. 15 on the Billboard 200, while also becoming her first album in three years to certify in multi-platinum sales, selling two million copies by 1999.[43][44] At the end of 1997, McEntire also charted at number 23 the charity single "What If". The proceeds of sales for this single were donated to the Salvation Army.[7]
In 1997, McEntire headlined a tour with Brooks & Dunn that led to the recording of "If You See Him/If You See Her" with the duo the following year.[41] This song was included on McEntire's If You See Him album and Brooks & Dunn's If You See Her album, both of which released on June 2.[45] Thom Owens of Allmusic reported in its review that both album titles were named nearly the same as "a way to draw attention for both parties, since they were no longer new guns—they were veterans in danger of losing ground to younger musicians".[46] The duet reached number one on the Billboard Hot Country Singles & Tracks chart in June 1998 and spawned an additional three Top 10 hits during that year: "Forever Love", "Wrong Night", and "One Honest Heart".[7] In addition, If You See Him peaked within the Top 10 on both the Billboard 200 and Top Country Albums chart, reaching number eight and number two, respectively.[47]
1999–2001:So Good Together and Greatest Hits Vol. 3: I'm A Survivor:
Reba McEntire (right) in June 1999
For 1999, McEntire released two albums. In September she issued her second Christmas album, The Secret of Giving: A Christmas Collection, which eventually sold 500,000 copies in the United States. In November, her twenty second studio album, So Good Together was released, spawning three singles. The first release, "What Do You Say" and the second release, "I'll Be" both reached the Top 5 on the Hot Country Singles & Tracks chart. So Good Together also brought her into the Top 40 of the Billboard Hot 100 for the first time, peaking at No. 31 there.[7] The album would eventually certify Platinum by the end of the decade.[4] What Do You Say became her first crossover hit as well. Unlike any of her previous albums, So Good Together was produced by three people, including McEntire. Entertainment Weekly commented that most of the album's material was "an odd set—mostly ballads, including an English/Portuguese duet with Jose e Durval on Boz Scaggs' 'We're All Alone'".[48]
In 2001, McEntire returned with her third greatest-hits album: Greatest Hits Vol. 3: I'm a Survivor. The album helped McEntire receive her third gold certification from the Recording Industry Association of America, which made her the most certified female country artist in music history. It spawned the number three hit "I'm a Survivor", which would be her last major hit for two years, as McEntire would go on a temporary hiatus to focus on her television sitcom, Reba.[41] The album's only other single, a cover of Kenny Rogers' "Sweet Music Man", went to No. 36.[7]
2003–07: Return to the music industry:
McEntire's seventy-sixth chart single, "I'm Gonna Take That Mountain", released in mid-2003, ended her two-year break from recording.[41] In November 2003, her twenty-third studio album, Room to Breathe, marked her first release of new material in four years. Writing for The Boston Globe, Steve Morse found the album's material to have a variety of musical stylings, saying the track "Love Revival" sounded like Tanya Tucker and calling "If I Had Any Sense at All" "a mournful country ballad".[49] Dan MacIntosh of Country Standard Time gave Room to Breathe a less-received review, reporting that "it ultimately falls short of leaving the listener breathless". He highlighted "I'm Gonna Take That Mountain" for sounding like a Bluegrass-inspired song such as music by Ricky Skaggs or Patty Loveless.[50] The album itself reached a peak of number four on the Billboard Top Country Albums chart and No. 25 on the Billboard 200, staying at the position for only one week.[51] The second single, "Somebody", also recorded by Mark Wills on his "Loving Every Minute" release, became her twenty-second number one single on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart and first since "If You See Him/If You See Her" six years previous. This became her thirty-third number one single overall.[7] It took longer than expected to become a hit, according to McEntire, who said, "Yeah, that had us concerned. The album came out in November and it took 30 weeks for "Somebody" to work its way up the charts. Usually, it's 15 weeks. But this one had a resurgence of life, especially after the video came out. MCA is really kicking butt with it."[52] Its third single, "He Gets That from Me" reached number seven, followed by the Amy Dalley co-written track "My Sister", which reached number 16.[4]
In 2005, McEntire released the compilation Reba No. 1's. The album comprised all thirty-three Number One hits in her career on all major trade charts. Two new songs were included on the album: "You're Gonna Be" and "Love Needs a Holiday". Both were released as singles, peaking at number 33 and number 60, respectively, with the latter becoming her first single in 27 years to miss the country top 40 entirely.[7] Country Standard Time called the tracks "Whoever's in New England" and "You Lie" the album highlights.[53] The album reached a peak of number three on the Top Country Albums chart and number 12 on the Billboard 200 upon its release, certifying 2× Platinum by the RIAA within two years. On August 30, 2007, McEntire received two CMA nominations: Female Vocalist of the Year and Vocal Event of the Year. With those two nominations plus another in 2008 and two more in 2009, Reba became the female artist with the most nominations (forty-eight) in the forty-three year history of the CMA Awards, surpassing Dolly Parton, who has forty-three.[54]
In mid-2007, McEntire announced the release of her twenty-fifth studio album, Reba: Duets, on September 18. McEntire stated that out of all the albums she had previously recorded, her newest release was particularly special: "This is an album that will go down in history as probably my favorite album to record because I got to work and sing and be with my friends. Out of everything in this whole career that I can say that I'm the most proud of, are my friends. And here's the proof." In promotion for the album, McEntire made appearances at radio shows and on The Oprah Winfrey Show September 19.[55] The album's lead single, "Because of You"—a duet with Kelly Clarkson, who originally recorded the song—became her fifty fifth Top 10 single on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart, tying her with Dolly Parton, who also had the same amount of Top 10 records.[56] The album was given high critical praise from magazines such as PopMatters, which called McEntire's vocals, "to sound sweet without being syrupy, while being extremely powerful. McEntire's vocal strength yields a different kind of authority than the bluesy, drawling growl of Janis Joplin, the weathered rasp of Marianne Faithfull, or even the soul-shrieking powerhouse of Tina Turner. Instead, Reba's voice combines the aspects of all three singers but tempers it with a Southern sweetness and an unmistakable femininity."[57] The album contained ten tracks of duets with country and pop artists, including Kenny Chesney, LeAnn Rimes, Trisha Yearwood, Carole King, and Justin Timberlake. Reba: Duets peaked at number one on the Top Country Albums chart, while also becoming her first album in her thirty-year career to peak and debut at number one on the Billboard 200, with 300,536 copies (according to Nielsen Soundscan) sold within its first week of release.[58] On January 17, 2008, McEntire embarked on the 2 Worlds 2 Voices Tour with Clarkson, which began in Dayton, Ohio.[59] A month after its release, the album was certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America on October 19, 2007.[60] The album's only other single was "Every Other Weekend". Recorded on the album as a duet with Chesney, it was released to radio with its co-writer, Skip Ewing, as a duet partner.[61]
2008–12: Move to Valory:
Reba McEntire performing in 2008
In early 2008, McEntire partnered again with Brooks & Dunn for a re-recorded version of their single "Cowgirls Don't Cry". McEntire is featured in the video, but not on the version found on the album Cowboy Town. It became McEntire's fifty-sixth Top Ten country hit, breaking Dolly's record for the most Top Ten country hits for a solo female.[62] In November 2008, McEntire announced that she would be departing from her label of twenty-five years and signing with the Valory Music Group, an imprint of Big Machine Records (coincidentally distributed by MCA and Mercury's parent, Universal Music Group). Under MCA, she had sold a total of sixty-seven million records worldwide and won two Grammys.[63] The switch to Valory reunited McEntire with the label's president, Scott Borchetta, who had worked as senior vice president of promotion at MCA during most of the 1990s. McEntire later commented on her label switch, stating, "I am thrilled to be joining the Valory team. Scott and I worked together on some of the biggest singles of my career, and I am excited to renew our partnership."[64] In November, 2008, MCA released a 50 Greatest Hits box set compilation album, containing three CDs, from 1984's "How Blue" to 2007's "Because of You"
On April 5, 2009, McEntire debuted her first single, "Strange", on Valory at the 2009 Academy of Country Music Awards.[65] The song debuted at No. 39 on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart, giving McEntire the highest single debut of her career,[66] and went on to peak at No. 11. Her twenty-sixth studio album, Keep On Loving You was released August 18, 2009 and became McEntire's first solo studio album in six years.[67] The album gained fairly positive reviews from most album critics, including Jim Malec of The 9513, which gave Keep on Loving You three and a half out of five stars. Malec favored "Strange", calling McEntire's performance of the song "stellar". Criticism was given to the album's fourth track, "I Want a Cowboy", characterizing the song as an "annoying stop-and-go melody and lyrics more befitting a 17 year old Lila McCann, it is a song so generic and irrelevant that it would be album filler on the worst albums".[68] On August 26, Keep on Loving You became McEntire's second album to top both the Billboard Country and 200 charts, selling almost 96,000 copies within its first week. With the album, McEntire broke the record for the female country artist with the most Billboard number one albums, which was previously held by Loretta Lynn.[69]
On August 18 the label released the album's second single, "Consider Me Gone", and it debuted at number 51 on The Hot Country Single's Chart.[70] The single became McEntire's thirty fourth number one on the Billboard chart in December.[71] With a four-week stay at Number One, this song became the longest-lasting Number One of her career, as well as the first multi-week Number One by a female country singer since Taylor Swift's "Our Song" in 2007.[72] The album's third and final single was "I Keep On Loving You", co-written by Ronnie Dunn of Brooks & Dunn, which peaked at number 7.
McEntire's thirty-fourth studio album, All the Women I Am, was released on November 9, 2010 under Valory Music Group/Starstruck Records.[73][74] The album's lead single called "Turn On the Radio" was released on August 3, 2010 and the music video premiered on August 18, 2010.[75][76] Upon its release, All the Women I Am received generally positive reviews from most music critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album received an average score of 72, based on 4 reviews, which indicates "generally favorable reviews". On November 10, 2010, McEntire appeared at the Country Music Association Awards performing "If I Were a Boy".[77] On December 20, 2010, McEntire scored her 35th Billboard number one single in the U.S. with "Turn On the Radio".[78] The second single from All the Women I Am was a cover of Beyoncé's "If I Were a Boy", which McEntire took to number 22. After it came "When Love Gets a Hold of You" at number 40 and "Somebody's Chelsea" at number 44. The latter was the only single that McEntire had co-written since "Only in My Mind" in 1985.[79] McEntire later announced that she would be visiting 31 cities on her All the Women I Am Tour late that year with The Band Perry, Steel Magnolia, and Edens Edge as opening acts on different stops of the tour. Dates for the tour were announced July 6, 2011.[80]
On March 1, 2011, the Country Music Association announced that McEntire will be inducted in the Country Music Hall of Fame.[81] McEntire was unable to attend the announcement after her father slipped into a coma following a stroke.[81] Reba was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame on May 22, 2011 at a Medallion Ceremony that took place at the Country Music Hall of Fame. Reba's Idol, Dolly Parton, inducted her.
On August 18, 2012 Reba tweeted "We are planning on having a new single out soon. Be watching for it. :)" On Saturday September 29 and 30 2012, in Niagara Falls, Ontario, Canada at the Fallsview Casino, Reba performed a new song called "Goodbye Looks Good On Me", which she referred to as a song she recorded for her new Sitcom, Malibu County.
Acting career:
1990–99: Entrance into film and television:
During the late 1980s, many of McEntire's music videos were being described as "mini movies". In each video, she would portray a different character, which distinguished her music videos from other videos released by artists during that time. In the late 1980s, McEntire became interested in an acting career, eventually hiring an agent. In 1989, she co-hosted Good Morning America on the ABC network.
In 1990, she obtained her first film role playing Heather Gummer in the horror comedy Tremors, along with Kevin Bacon. The film told the story of a small group of people living in Nevada who were fighting subterranean worm-like creatures. After the film's release, McEntire developed a strong interest in acting and made it her second career.[82][83] The following year, she starred along with Kenny Rogers and Burt Reynolds in the made-for-television movie, The Gambler Returns: The Luck of the Draw. In 1994, McEntire worked with director, Rob Reiner in the film, North, playing Ma Tex. The film obtained negative reviews, receiving only two and a half stars from Allmovie.[84]
In 1994, McEntire starred in Is There Life Out There?, a television movie based on her song of the same name. The following year, she appeared in Buffalo Girls, which was based upon the life of western cowgirl, Calamity Jane (played by Anjelica Huston). Playing Jane's friend, Annie Oakley, Buffalo Girls was nominated for an Emmy award.[85] In 1996, McEntire was cast by director James Cameron as Molly Brown in his film Titanic. However, when it became apparent production for the film would extend well beyond its original length, McEntire had to turn down the part, as she had already scheduled prior concert engagements. The role was recast with Kathy Bates.[86] In 1998, she starred as Lizzie Brooks in Forever Love, which was based upon McEntire's hit single of the same name.[87] In 1994, There was a new "The Little Rascals" where McEntire was Guest Starring as A.J. Ferguson.
2000–07: Broadway and television series:
In early 2001, McEntire expanded into theater, starring in the Broadway revival of Annie Get Your Gun. Playing Annie Oakley (whom she had previously portrayed in Buffalo Girls), McEntire's performance was critically acclaimed by several newspapers, including The New York Times, which commented, "Without qualification the best performance by an actress in a musical comedy this season."[88] McEntire personally called the musical, "some of the hardest work I've ever done in my life".[89]
In 2005, McEntire starred as Nellie Forbush in the Carnegie Hall concert production of the Broadway musical South Pacific with Alec Baldwin as Luther Billis and Brian Stokes Mitchell as Emile de Becque, directed by Walter Bobbie and with an adapted script by David Ives. The concert was broadcast as part of the Great Performances series in 2006.[90]
In October 2001, McEntire premiered her half-hour television sitcom Reba on the WB network. The show was based around divorced mother Reba Hart, who learns how to handle life situations after her husband divorces her and their teenage daughter becomes pregnant.[91] Reba garnered critical acclaim and success, becoming the network's highest-rated television show for adults ranging from the ages of eighteen to forty nine. The show ran for six seasons and earned McEntire a nomination for a Golden Globe award.[83] It was cancelled on February 18, 2007; the series finale had 8.7 million viewers world-wide.[92]
2011—present: Return to television:
In September 2011, McEntire confirmed on her website that ABC had ordered a pilot for her second television series, Malibu Country.[93] McEntire will play a divorced mother of two who moves to Malibu, California to restart her music career.[93] The pilot will be filmed in April 2012 and will begin production on its first season in August. It was recently announced that the pilot for Malibu Country will premiere November 2, 2012. The show will then begin showing every Friday night at 8:30/7:30c on ABC.[94] On May 11, 2012, McEntire tweeted that the show had been picked up.[95][96] She also was the host in the 2011 NASCAR Award Show in Las Vegas. According to deadline TV reviews Malibu Country stands as TV's most-watched freshman comedy this season (8.7 million). Malibu Country was officially cancelled by ABC on May 10, 2013 after eighteen episodes.
Musical styles and legacy:
Reba McEntire in concert on August 8, 2008.
McEntire's sound has been influenced by the country music of Bob Wills, Merle Haggard, Dolly Parton, Barbara Mandrell, and Patsy Cline.[97] In college, McEntire would sneak into local dances at the Oklahoma–Texas border so she could dance to Wills's music, commenting that, "it didn't get any better than dancing to Bob Wills music". She also explained Merle Haggard's influence on her career, stating "I had every album he ever put out", and would sing "every song he did", along with her brother, Pake and sister, Susie. In addition, her first major hit, "Sweet Dreams" was a remake of Patsy Cline's version of the song, according to McEntire herself.[98] McEntire's music has been described to not only be built upon traditional country music, but also expand into the genres of Country pop, Mainstream pop, Soul, Adult Contemporary, and R&B. At times, her music has often been criticized for moving away from traditional country music. Many music critics have often called her music to be "melodramatic", "formulaic", and "bombastic", particularly after her 1988 album, Reba. Studio releases such as Sweet Sixteen, Rumor Has It, It's Your Call, and Starting Over have often been described by these terms.[6]
McEntire possesses a contralto vocal range[99] and performs "vocal gymnastics" with her voice,[100] a musical technique in which a singer twirls a note around, using their vibrato. McEntire has often credited Dolly Parton for influencing this trait, stating that she would always listen to Parton's records and find her style of vocal gymnastics, "so pretty".[89]
McEntire has often been regarded as one of country music's most influential female vocalists and most beloved entertainers.[6][97] She has also been highly credited for remaining one of country's most popular female artists for nearly four decades, maintaining her success by continually incorporating contemporary musical sounds without changing her traditional vocal style.[41][97] For many new artists, she has been credited as the inspiration to their careers in country music, including Faith Hill, Martina McBride, Trisha Yearwood, and LeAnn Rimes. She has also been credited as an inspiration to other performers such as Sara Evans, Kelly Clarkson, Lee Ann Womack, Terri Clark, Taylor Swift, Carrie Underwood,.[97] The Net Music Countdown second handedly reported, "That influence has manifested itself in many ways. As a role model, she's shown others how to handle fame with grace and good humor while never backing down from her values or goals. Just as importantly, she's shown others to refuse to accept limitations on what she can do or how much she can achieve." McEntire also explained to the online website, "Whatever I'm doing, I feel like I'm representing country music". "It's always been my main career, and it's where my loyalties lie. I feel like I'm waving the flag of country music wherever I go, and I couldn't be prouder to do it."[101]
Personal life:
McEntire's two siblings (both from the Singing McEntires) have also maintained careers in the music industry. Her brother, Pake McEntire, was a successful country artist in the late 1980s and early 1990s. Her sister, Susie Luchsinger, is a successful Christian music singer. She also has an older sister, Alice.[102]
In 1976, McEntire married national steer wrestling champion and rancher Charlie Battles. Together, the couple owned a ranch in Oklahoma and managed her career. In 1987, McEntire divorced Battles and moved to Nashville, Tennessee. She later commented to Bob Allen of Country Music about their separation, saying, "I had to pack everything in one day and leave. I was totally starting over." McEntire later claimed that she wanted to focus more on her music career, while Battles insisted that she remain at home, helping to take care of the ranch. McEntire stated, "I wasn't the little girl anymore, taking orders, and doing what he said."
In 1989, McEntire married her manager and former steel guitar player, Narvel Blackstock. The couple wed in a private ceremony on a boat in Lake Tahoe. Together, the pair took over all aspects of McEntire's career, forming Starstruck Entertainment, which was originally designed to help manage her career. From her second marriage, McEntire inherited three stepchildren and gave birth to a son, Shelby Steven McEntire Blackstock, on February 23, 1990. After the couple celebrated their twentieth wedding anniversary, McEntire stated that the secrets to her enduring marriage were "Respect, faith, love, trust, and lots of patience".[103]
Reba McEntire in September 2012
McEntire's stepson and talent manager Brandon Blackstock became engaged to McEntire's friend Kelly Clarkson on December 14, 2012, after ten months of dating.[104] On hearing the news, McEntire was quick to express her excitement in a recent interview with Katie Couric: "[I'm] thrilled to death, thrilled to death. To have my buddy as my daughter-in-law, I mean, who could ask for more? She's a big-hearted, very good person. Very talented",[105]
Awards:
Main article: List of awards and nominations received by Reba McEntire
McEntire holds the record for the most Academy of Country Music Top Female Vocalist Awards (seven), and American Music Awards for Favorite Country Female Artist (twelve), and ties with Martina McBride for most Country Music Association Female Vocalist of the Year Awards (four), though McEntire does have the distinction of winning the award 4 times consecutively. She also is one of only two women in country music history to have attained a number one hit in four different decades, and the only female to achieve solo number ones across four decades.
She was inducted into the Oklahoma Hall of Fame in 1998.[106]
Discography:
Main articles: Reba McEntire albums discography and Reba McEntire singles discography
Studio albums:
1977: Reba McEntire
1979: Out of a Dream
1980: Feel the Fire
1981: Heart to Heart
1982: Unlimited
1983: Behind the Scene
1984: Just a Little Love
1984: My Kind of Country
1985: Have I Got a Deal for You
1986: Whoever's in New England
1986: What Am I Gonna Do About You
1987: The Last One to Know
1988: Reba
1989: Sweet Sixteen
1990: Rumor Has It
1991: For My Broken Heart
1992: It's Your Call
1994: Read My Mind
1995: Starting Over
1996: What If It's You
1998: If You See Him
1999: So Good Together
2003: Room to Breathe
2007: Reba: Duets
2009: Keep On Loving You
2010: All the Women I Am
Other albums[edit]Christmas albums
1987: Merry Christmas to You
1999: The Secret of Giving: A Christmas Collection
Live albums
1989: Reba Live
Compilation albums
1985: The Best of Reba McEntire
1986: Reba Nell McEntire
1987: Greatest Hits
1993: Greatest Hits Vol. 2
1994: Oklahoma Girl
1998: Moments and Memories: The Best of Reba
2000: I'll Be
2001: Greatest Hits Volume III: I'm a Survivor
2003: 20th Century Masters: The Christmas Collection: The Best of Reba
2005: Reba No. 1's
2006: 20th Century Masters: The Millennium Collection: The Best of Reba McEntire
2008: Love Revival
2008: 50 Greatest Hits
Filmography:
Film Year, Title, Role, Notes, Gross Revenue
1990 Tremors Heather Gummer Nominated – Saturn Award for Best Supporting Actress $16,667,084.
1994 Maverick spectator uncredited $183,000,000
1994 North Ma Tex $9,000,000
1994 Little Rascals, TheThe Little Rascals A.J. Ferguson $71,000,000
2001 One Night at McCool's Dr. Green $15,000,000
2006 Fox and the Hound 2, TheThe Fox and the Hound 2 Dixie voice $95,000,000
2006 Charlotte's Web Betsy the Cow voice $145,000,000
Television Year Title Role Notes
1991 Gambler Returns: The Luck of the Draw, TheThe Gambler Returns: The Luck of the Draw Burgundy Jones
1993 Man From Left Field, TheThe Man From Left Field Nancy Lee Prinzi
1994 Frasier Rachael Episode: "Fortysomething"
1994 Is There Life Out There Lily Marshall
1995 Buffalo Girls Annie Oakley
1998 Forever Love Lizzie Brooks
1998 Hercules Artemis (voice) Episode: "Hercules and the Falling Stars"
Episode: "Hercules and the Caledonian Boar"
1999 Secret of Giving Rose Cameron
2001–2007 Reba Reba Hart People's Choice Award for Favorite Female Performer in a New Television Series (2002)
Nominated – Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Television Series Musical or Comedy (2004)
2010 Better With You Lorraine Ashley Episode: "Better With Flirting"
2011 Working Class Renee Episode: "Sugar Mama"
2012–2013 Malibu Country Reba Gallager 18 episodes
2012 Blake Shelton's Not So Family Christmas Herself (TV Christmas special)
Theater Year Title Role Notes
2001 Annie Get Your Gun Annie Oakley Drama Desk Special Award
Theatre World Award
2006 South Pacific: In Concert from Carnegie Hall Nellie Forbush
Reba McEntire Albums ·Singles:
Studio albums:
Reba McEntire ·Out of a Dream ·Feel the Fire ·Heart to Heart ·Unlimited ·Behind the Scene ·Just a Little Love ·My Kind of Country ·Have I Got a Deal for You ·Whoever's in New England ·What Am I Gonna Do About You ·The Last One to Know ·Reba ·Sweet Sixteen ·Rumor Has It ·For My Broken Heart ·It's Your Call ·Read My Mind ·Starting Over ·What If It's You ·If You See Him ·So Good Together ·Room to Breathe ·Reba: Duets ·Keep On Loving You ·All the Women I Am
Compilation albums:
The Best of Reba McEntire ·Reba Nell McEntire ·Greatest Hits ·Greatest Hits Volume Two ·Oklahoma Girl ·Greatest Hits Volume III: I'm a Survivor ·20th Century Masters: The Christmas Collection ·Reba #1's ·20th Century Masters – The Millennium Collection: The Best of Reba McEntire ·Love Revival ·50 Greatest Hits
Live albums:
Reba Live
Christmas albums:
Merry Christmas to You ·The Secret of Giving: A Christmas Collection
Television:
The Gambler Returns: The Luck of the Draw ·The Man from Left Field ·Is There Life Out There? ·Buffalo Girls ·Forever Love ·Reba ·Malibu Country
Films:
Tremors ·North ·One Night at McCool's ·The Little Rascals ·The Fox and the Hound 2 ·Charlotte's Web
Theater:
Annie Get Your Gun ·South Pacific
Tours:
Singer's Diary Tour ·Girls Night Out Tour ·2 Hats and a Redhead Tour ·REBA: Key to the Heart ·Key to the Heart Tour 2007 ·2 Worlds 2 Voices Tour ·Twang Tour ·All the Women I Am Tour
Related articles:
Mercury Records ·MCA Nashville ·Valory Music Group
Categories: 1955 births, 20th-century American actresses, 21st-century American actresses, 20th-century American singers, 21st-century American singers, Actresses from Oklahoma, American Christians, American country singers, American contraltos, American female singers, American film actresses, American television actresses, American television producers, Big Machine Records artists, Grammy Award-winning artists, Grand Ole Opry members, Living people, MCA Records artists, Mercury Records artists, Oklahoma Republicans, Musicians from Oklahoma, People from Pittsburg County, Oklahoma, People from McAlester, Oklahoma, Southeastern Oklahoma State University alumni, Country Music Hall of Fame inductees, Members of the Country Music Association.
