Taylor’s Fearlessly Reclaiming Her Voice

Apr 9, 20212 min read

Taylor has risen, and better than ever.

( @taylorswift / Instagram )

I remember the exact moment that I first listened to Fearless. I was sitting at my family’s clunky desktop computer exploring the depths of early YouTube. After watching Katy Perry’s I Kissed a Girl (A BOP, BTW, I stumbled my way over to the Love Story music video. The cinematic masterpiece that the video is quickly became one my favorite music videos of all time.

Soon, I often found my elementary-school-self reaching into my Jansport backpack, pulling out my red iPod Nano, and letting You Belong With Me become the anthem to my main character fantasy.

For many members of Gen Z, this nostalgic memory is one that may hit just a bit too close to home. It’s why so many Swifties have been patiently waiting for the rebirth of Fearless, Taylor Swift’s sophomore album.

From a legal standpoint, the past couple years have been very messy for Taylor. As crazy as it may seem, she struggled to gain ownership over her music through her previous contract with Big Machine Record. (To her ex talent manager, Scooter Braun: fuck you.)

So the queen is reclaiming her voice by re-releasing all of her songs. Now, Fearless will be completely and utterly under Taylor’s domain, leaving her to reap the benefits of her own beautiful discography.

You can probably imagine, this is a really big deal for Swifties. Fearless essentially skyrocketed her into instant stardom (not like she wasn’t a star before). It won her the 2010 Grammy for Album of the Year and produced classic country/pop-hits such as Love Story, Fifteen, and You Belong With Me. For many Swifties, including myself, Fearless was such a pivotal point in our childhoods. As a lil baby gay who also came from a small town, You Belong With Me was with me during a time when almost every single one of my earliest crushes was on a straight boy who had no idea I existed.

As if her rerelease didn’t already plunge everyone into 2008 nostalgia, Taylor’s opening “The Vault” (*cue the Ooos and Aaas*). Along with the 20 songs from her original Fearless album, this new rendition includes six new songs that feature collaborations with artists like Keith Urban and Maren Morris. The very thought of throwing it back to the Elvira remix of Love Story is inducing me into full-body chills.

The discography of Taylor Swift, whether you consider yourself a Swiftie or not, will go down in history as one of the most prolific artists of all time. I am just happy that I have been able to live through the evolution of Taylor — watching her grow from a small-town country singer to one of the most talented songwriters of all time has been quite the experience.

Kyle Hamilton is an Online Writer for the 'After Dark' portion of Rowdy Magazine. In his free time he enjoys photography, being super gay, and drinking enough cold brew to kill a small child. You can find him at @hamkyl on insta ;)