Taylor Swift - "Fearless"

[onebuffalo]

Considering what tonight's chart looks like, Fearless could be spending another two weeks on the chart (if she keeps falling, despite the past two weeks being a bulleted single).

[singingsparrow]

Apr 19, 2010 14:28:02 GMT -5 joey2002 said:

I'll bet that Taylor is right back in business once she releases her 3rd album...

Carrie also had a fairly quiet period following the 5th single from her 2nd album, "I Told You So".

Again, I think it depends on whether her current mild-to-moderate chart lull is part of a larger tectonic shift in the Country radio landscape or not.

Like it or not, Taylor Swift is (undeservedly, to a large extent) associated heavily with that "Disney Country" demographic, or otherwise more slickly produced Top 40-friendly pop with country gravy drizzling...................which has invoked many jeers from more traditionalist circles like the 9513 and Roughstock which have gone so far, regardless of her young age, to repeatedly slander her vocal abilities primarily, as well as what they perceive to be an obsession with fairytale themes in her songs (they're obviously much deeper than that).

But those circles are not merely jeering at Taylor Swift: they're jeering at that whole market that appeals to younger Americans that traditionally have not been known to listen to Country music. At the same time Taylor Swift is at least in a temporary chart lull, Rascal Flatts has lost considerable momentum as well, who really appeal to the same market overall. One may argue Carrie Underwood ought to be experiencing some of the backlash too, yet I think she has demonstrated to some degree a willingness to transcend the obvious constituencies of hers with records like her Randy Travis cover and "Someday When I Stop Loving You", thus she has been able to eschew enough of that backlash to keep her career momentum going.

Ergo, if she's slowing at the moment but it has nothing to do with some larger trend that disfavors the kind of market she and Rascal Flatts, among others, has been appealing to, then I think her decline will be less dramatic. However, if it IS part of a larger trend away from that kind of country and back toward neotraditionalist Country, unless she is perceived as exhibiting real artistic maturity with her third album era rather than playing it "safe", I think she may suffer a sharp decline in commercial stature and only go double platinum with her next album.

Namaste,
Lisping Hibiscus

[drock89]

Here's my beef with Taylor: She has shown me that she can really develop a storyline and a lyric. There's no doubt she can write catchy melodies but also melodies that invoke a deep emotion. While at times her delivery is quite flat, she also can give a pretty good delivery of her songs.

But, she has to grow up at some point. I agree with Lisping Hibiscus that if she doesn't "exhibit real artistic maturity with her third album," she's going to be in trouble. I think that much was obvious from Sunday's ACM results. I know Nashville lives by the "if it's not broke, don't fix it" motto, but Taylor's going to have to do something musically to, not necessarily reinvent her, but show the industry and her fans that she is capable of growing both personally and musically.

At this point, that hasn't happened; and judging by the head-banging on Sunday, I fear that she's not ready to make that leap yet.

[onebuffalo]

Apr 19, 2010 18:11:16 GMT -5 onebuffalo said:

Considering what tonight's chart looks like, Fearless could be spending another two weeks on the chart (if she keeps falling, despite the past two weeks being a bulleted single).

She actually went up two to #11, despite losing audience and spins!

[desertfloods]

So is this finally done now?

What are the song's peak positions?

[Deleted]

Apr 22, 2010 0:20:46 GMT -5 desertfloods said:

So is this finally done now?

What are the song's peak positions?

Fearless currently sits at #11 on the 5/1 BB chart. It's peak was a few weeks ago, right at #10. She moved up 2 spots last week, only because two top 10 songs went recurrent. Over the past 2 chart weeks "Fearless" has lost audience, so if she cannot gain audience this week (she'd need a miracle to do so), this song will post its third negative week and, therefore, will go recurrent.

If I said anything wrong or anyone wants to add anything, feel free to correct or add insight. I don't claim to be a chart expert, but this is the way I understand the situation with Taylor's song.

[kissin'u]

omg flop :(

[drock89]

Apr 22, 2010 9:09:32 GMT -5 kissin'u said:

omg flop :(

For sure. Can't believe the album only sold close to 6 million copies (EDIT: thanks, dudley!) and spawned five top 10 hits, including two #1s..

[43dudleyvillas]

Nearly 5.8 million in US album sales, actually. But yes, this "flop" business is silly, and has no place here. The song made the top-10 in the wake of inevitable artist fatigue and some live performance-based artist backlash. "Fearless" didn't test particularly well with country radio listeners, the weekly downloads during the song's chart run were, as leilamaurizia pointed out, underwhelming for an artist's with Taylor's digital presence (in fairness, though, it is a late single), and the fact that it faltered even after a label push shows the limitations of what a label can do in support of a song if radio isn't keen to move it further up the charts. Taylor's third studio release is still going to be the most anticipated and media-covered album of the year and she will again be inescapable soon enough. Best move for now, in my view, is to take a step back, not release another single from Fearless and give people some time to anticipate the lead single from the new project. On the question of growth, I think Taylor and her team are too market-savvy not to know that fans, music listeners and critics alike are looking for her to move beyond the fairytale meme and that there might be more scrutiny of her sound next time.

The only interesting thing to me about "Fearless"' run was actually the content of the ad that Big Machine put out. The message in the ad was that "Fearless" is a single exclusive to country radio. It reminded me of the KKGO (I think it was KKGO) programmer who said to Billboard in an inset to a Lady A article that he could actually see the ratings points in the younger demo for his country station drifting down as Taylor's pop airplay increased. So here was the label trying to remind country radio that this particular song was actually not a pop single. It didn't work, but the very fact that the label felt it had to send this message is notable, I think. It is a reminder that to some degree, a radio station's interest in playing an artist is about the perceived demo/audience that artist brings in (and, on the flip side, turns off).

[leilamaurizia]

Apr 20, 2010 9:51:04 GMT -5 drock89 said:

But, she has to grow up at some point. I agree with Lisping Hibiscus that if she doesn't "exhibit real artistic maturity with her third album," she's going to be in trouble. I think that much was obvious from Sunday's ACM results. I know Nashville lives by the "if it's not broke, don't fix it" motto, but Taylor's going to have to do something musically to, not necessarily reinvent her, but show the industry and her fans that she is capable of growing both personally and musically.

At this point, that hasn't happened; and judging by the head-banging on Sunday, I fear that she's not ready to make that leap yet.

Have you read the latest Country Aircheck Weekly? Or is it the Billboard Country Update? Hmm, it's one or the other but I'm sure it's the latest issue. There's an item there that says Taylor's album will be released later this year. They emphasize that it will be from a young woman's perspective and not deal with "teen concerns." I remember the "teen concerns" phrase specifically because it indicated to me that Taylor and co. are very much aware of that criticism.

Does anyone know if "Jump then Fall" was written after the Fearless songs? 'Coz if it was, that's just disappointing. In fairness though, she may have been trying to fit in with a theme and can veer another way at will. Ugh, just thinking about "jump then fall, jump then fall" gives me a headache.

Apr 22, 2010 10:50:22 GMT -5 43dudleyvillas said:

The only interesting thing to me about "Fearless"' run was actually the content of the ad that Big Machine put out. The message in the ad was that "Fearless" is a single exclusive to country radio. It reminded me of the KKGO (I think it was KKGO) programmer who said to Billboard in an inset to a Lady A article that he could actually see the ratings points in the younger demo for his country station drifting down as Taylor's pop airplay increased. So here was the label trying to remind country radio that this particular song was actually not a pop single. It didn't work, but the very fact that the label felt it had to send this message is notable, I think. It is a reminder that to some degree, a radio station's interest in playing an artist is about the perceived demo/audience that artist brings in (and, on the flip side, turns off).

During the time when Taylor's singles were hitting on all formats including country, I was actually wondering why country radio stations were still playing her on maximum rotation? Considering that it's highly likely that, at her peak, majority of Taylor's fanbase were/are not primarily country music fans, why would they tune in to country radio to wait for her singles to come on, when they can hear her on pop/ AC/ Hot AC/ etc? What ratings benefits would country radio stations reap by treating her like a core format artist? I felt a little validated by that KKGO response when you previously relayed it. I guess I wasn't too far off with my queries.

[Modern Myth]

Apr 22, 2010 11:23:55 GMT -5 leilamaurizia said:

Apr 20, 2010 9:51:04 GMT -5 drock89 said:

But, she has to grow up at some point. I agree with Lisping Hibiscus that if she doesn't "exhibit real artistic maturity with her third album," she's going to be in trouble. I think that much was obvious from Sunday's ACM results. I know Nashville lives by the "if it's not broke, don't fix it" motto, but Taylor's going to have to do something musically to, not necessarily reinvent her, but show the industry and her fans that she is capable of growing both personally and musically.

At this point, that hasn't happened; and judging by the head-banging on Sunday, I fear that she's not ready to make that leap yet.

Have you read the latest Country Aircheck Weekly? Or is it the Billboard Country Update? Hmm, it's one or the other but I'm sure it's the latest issue. There's an item there that says Taylor's album will be released later this year. They emphasize that it will be from a young woman's perspective and not deal with "teen concerns." I remember the "teen concerns" phrase specifically because it indicated to me that Taylor and co. are very much aware of that criticism.

Does anyone know if "Jump then Fall" was written after the Fearless songs? 'Coz if it was, that's just disappointing. In fairness though, she may have been trying to fit in with a theme and can veer another way at will. Ugh, just thinking about "jump then fall, jump then fall" gives me a headache.

I hope "Jump Then Fall" doesn't resemble the future of the next album. It's a cute little album track, but that's it. I do know that "Come In With The Rain" is back in the time of her debut because I've had a LQ version of it for around three years prior to the release of the Fearless deluxe version, so maybe JTF is too. Also "Superstar" is kinda childish and "The Other Side of the Door" is kinda fairy tale ish too, so I'm just hoping everything sounds like the piano version of F&A or Untouchable.

[onebuffalo]

I personally think that the Fearless Era should be over once Fearless falls off the charts. To have a CD that is certified at six times platinum in this era of low CD sales is extraordinary to say the least. Taylor Swift reminds me of the Dixie Chicks in one aspect. She rose quickly to superstardom and is now showing the effects of her country fan base eroding (the Chicks through their anti-Bush comment in 2003 and Swift courting pop and A.C. audiences over the past two years).
What I would love to see Swift do is to hire a vocal coach so her live performances sound better. She did turn 20 this past December and something she should be doing at this time is to write songs that actually showing her maturing in life. Let's face it, she has grown right in front of us during the past four years. If she were to put a Fifteen type song on the next CD, it would be out of place (to say the least). I am not suggesting she sing Conway Twitty type of love songs, but songs that would be appropriate for a young woman of her stature (maybe Reba McEntire's For My Broken Heart).
The future for Swift is still bright. I think she should rely on songwriters for some of her material (she is becoming the female Clint Black for only recording and releasing songs she has wrote). I would love to see the songwriting credits for the third CD be varied and her song choices to be bold in nature. She does have to expand her horizons as an artist and songwriter (look at Carrie Underwood). Once her live performances are taken care of, she should be able to stifle her critics (remember Shania Twain not touring in support of The Woman In Me CD? A lot of people said she did not have the vocal chops to deliver a great performance. She quieted a lot of people when she toured with the Come On Over CD).
It is certainly not the end of the world to see Swift NOT win an A.C.M. Award this year. That just may be a blessing in disguise. Underwood did not win a C.M.A. Award last year, but has made up for it by winning a People's Choice Award, a Grammy, and an A.C.M. Award this year.

[joey2002]

^^ First off, I believe songs like "Jump Then Fall" added to her re-release of Fearless are just album tracks -- just like songs such as "I'm Only Me When I'm With You" that she added to the re-release of her debut CD were just album tracks.

^ Secondly, I would think Taylor would have performed her new single at the ACM's if she was going 6 deep. Just a guess - but I think she'll take a break - and then release a new CD in the Fall.

[Zazie]

I do think it's a serious mistake to record albums on which she's written every song. That accentuates her lack of experience -- maybe some of her supporters think that's an asset, but I don't see why.

Merle Haggard was one of the greatest songwriters in country and across all genres -- but Merle didn't insist on recording only songs he himself wrote. He sang Lefty Frizzell songs, Willie Nelson songs, Sonny Throckmorton songs, Townes van Zandt songs -- and his music was all the stronger for that.

Clint Black didn't help his career by insisting on recording his own material. And he was (until happiness found him and undercut his writing skills) a much better songwriter than Taylor. His co-write with Merle was at least a step up, but his career would have been much more interesting if he'd been willing to record other people's songs.

And there are so many other examples of singer-songwriters taking a step forward by recording other people's material. It's not a admission of any weaknesses to sing someone else's material.

I know her marketing people have all kinds of plans for her next album. I just hope someone can talk her into broadening the scope of the music she records. Her insistence on writing all her own songs is the single worst mistake she's made in her career to date.

[Gravity.]

If Taylor wants career longevity, she will need to step it up. Fearless was a great album, but I know that she can do even better. She's twenty years old now, and we all know that she can write a good lyric. I'm hoping for more songs in the vein of Untouchable, Cold As You, and You're Not Sorry. Hopefully she's done with the cutesy Romeo and Juliet theme that encompassed what seemed like the entire era.

That said, her fairytale songs (Love Story and White Horse) were very well done in my opinion. Today Was A Fairytale was terrible though.

[joey2002]

Apr 22, 2010 15:47:31 GMT -5 Zazie said:

I know her marketing people have all kinds of plans for her next album. I just hope someone can talk her into broadening the scope of the music she records. Her insistence on writing all her own songs is the single worst mistake she's made in her career to date.

Fearless did sell 6 million copies, and her debut CD sold nearly 5 million, so it couldn't have been that big of a mistake ... yet.

Some of the songs were co-written and didn't start with Taylor. For example - "The Way I Loved You" was a John Rich tune that Taylor helped finish - and "Breathe" was a duet that Taylor and Colbie Caillat co-wrote.

I do agree that she needs to change things up on the 3rd album a bit -- and not pen every song.

[phil1996]

^Yeah, Taylor has to do somethin' different, maybe a song with some steel guitar in it???

Rascal Flatts should do somthing like that also............

[Joe1240]

The song drops again on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart from #78 to #84. I think Taylor will come back strong with her next single. I can't wait till her next album.

[countryfan2002]

Apr 22, 2010 19:14:45 GMT -5 phil1996 said:

^Yeah, Taylor has to do somethin' different, maybe a song with some steel guitar in it???

Rascal Flatts should do somthing like that also............

But you don't realize something very critical here. Taylor's career is struggling. Do you really think she'll go pure country on us when she needs success?
All sarcasm aside, I would love to hear an album with song-quality of 'Fearless' and production quality of her debut. But more than likely, that won't happen.

[dfrogger]

I think Taylor needs to focus on acting now along with her writing skills. I seriously think she would be a great actress and her writing skills could be expanded to movie scripts also.
NO...I am not being sarcastic! I really think she is very talented and would love to see her develop as an artist in those areas...jmo

[dbt]

I don't think Taylor should record any songs that were written by other songwriters. Her back catalog of unreleased songs is so deep that she could pull out 12 excellent songs on a whim and put together a great album. I think, as joey2002 mentioned, the fact that she includes songs which were started by other songwriters and finished by her allows for enough diversity. That being said, I only want to hear Taylor-written or co-written songs on her 3rd album.

[drock89]

I agree that she should explore other songwriters, when appropriate. I don't think I will get to see Shania do that this time around, but as mentioned, Twain felt she had to prove herself by writing her own hits. Well, both ST and TS have proven themselves; now it's time to cut gems and not fluff. Expand your horizon, if you will. I think Taylor would benefit greatly from that. Also agree that she would benefit from a vocal coach; there's no shame in trying to improve your craft. No one is perfect.

[mairy]

Now that this is done, I hope she doesn't release anything in a couple of month. No new single untill august-september, please.

[Deleted]

So, this got an extra week on BB...hmmm...anyone want to try and explain?

[drummerman2009]

Fell to #16 as a matter of fact. It was supposed to have gone recurrent this week. Perhaps it didn't get enough loss of audience for BB to pull it totally off the charts.

[Deleted]

Apr 26, 2010 22:19:04 GMT -5 drummerman2009 said:

Fell to #16 as a matter of fact. It was supposed to have gone recurrent this week. Perhaps it didn't get enough loss of audience for BB to pull it totally off the charts.

I believe it was only because the first week where it lost audience, it still had a bullet. But on the MB thread there was discussion about this predicament, and according to the text from BB's rule (Zazie helped explain, and I believe rowdawg added insight as well) the bullet shouldn't have mattered. The only way I see it is that it's a tiny loophole in the rule and BB can decide if they want to pull it or not. As far as audience losses, this one is sinking like a rock. A first look at next week reveals a mainly stagnant chart, so maybe BB wanted to give this one an extra week simply to allow for some small movement in the top 25 yet. In the end, however, it appears BB sorta went around their rule...

[desertfloods]

Apr 25, 2010 10:03:35 GMT -5 @dbt said:

I don't think Taylor should record any songs that were written by other songwriters. Her back catalog of unreleased songs is so deep that she could pull out 12 excellent songs on a whim and put together a great album.

I'm sure she has a huge catalog of unreleased songs, but the problem is, her back catalog will mainly consist of songs similar to everything she's released so far. Time to show some growth.

[drock89]

One of my local country stations has already dropped this song and I've noticed has started playing "Today Was A Fairytale" in its stead. That might explain the rapid drop for this song; she has other recent, unreleased-to-radio songs that PD/MDs can choose from.

[justlurkingaround]

^ I don't think so.
I honestly like "Fearless" (the song). I think it's a fun song.
However, I agree with those saying that she needs a more mature direction for her next album. Taylor and I are basically the same age and I don't think people my age want to hear about fairytales all the time or even believe in happily ever after endings.
I'm sure she doesn't either. She might have had a fairytale-like year but recent events have shown that it can't all be rosy.

I'm not sure if I want to see other people write on her album (as in have songs where she's not listed as a writer). As far as I'm concerned, she's doing fine on her own. It would be interesting to see how other people's works would sound with her, though.

[drummerman2009]

I kind of figured when I predicted what was going to happen in 2010 to Taylor in that she was going to be bigger on Hot 100, AC and Adult Pop than she was going to be on country.

3 of her singles are still on the AC charts: "You Belong With Me" still on after nearly a year, "Fifteen", and "Today Was A Fairytale" and she could add to that if they decide to get "Fearless" added on as an AC hit.

Her duet with John Mayer, "Half Of My Heart", debuted on the Adult Top 40 this week and more than likely it to will follow on the AC charts as well.

Personally, I would like to have seen a sixth country single from Fearless, (could happen yet) either "Forever And For Always" which she premiered on the CMA awards last year or "Change" which she premiered on the ACM Awards a couple of weeks ago. Or will she do what Sugarland has done and become quiet with country radio until we have a first single from her new album coming up and I expect that it's going to be a huge country single for her (whatever song it might be).