Hits Radio's female presenters reveal why they think Taylor Swift is a hugely impactful artist
She's on tour in the UK at the moment
'Taylor Swift | The Eras Tour' is now in the UK - having already wowed fans in Edinburgh with her 45-song set list, Taylor Swift is now set to delight fans in Liverpool, Cardiff and London.
Taylor is not only an amazing singer, songwriter and performer, but she's also hugely influential, having inspired several university programmes, including the University of Liverpool's Tay Day Symposium, which took place on Wednesday 12th June.
Here at Hits Radio as we continue to celebrate the singer who gave us hits like 'Shake It Off', '22', 'Anti-Hero', and 'Fortnight'. So, we thought we'd chat to some of our female presenters to find out why they think she is so impactful as an artist. Take a look at their great reasons below...
The reasons by Taylor Swift is so impactful as an artist:
Angellica Bell
Hits Radio (National) Breakfast presenter and Saturday morning presenter, Angellica Bell told us why she thinks Taylor has such a strong connection with her fans.
She explained: "Taylor Swift has this incredible skill of connection - whether that be tapping into different generations with her original song writing, making every single one of her 'Swifties' feel special and from what we've seen, knows how to put on a show! Over the years, she's picked up followers like The Pied Piper galvanising a huge fan base! She's brilliant!"
Hattie Pearson
Afternoon presenter Hattie Pearson is a big fan of Taylor, telling us: "She's an icon of our generation, who not only leads by example, but stands up for what she believes in and inspires women of all ages to be the best versions of themselves."
Jennie Longdon
Our overnight presenter Jennie Longdon told us why she thinks Taylor Swift is as hugely impactful artist, she said: "Taylor is a great storyteller. Her lyrics are real, honest, self-deprecating and relatable. She has a wonderful ability to connect with her audience through shared experiences. I think this is a big reason so many people love her."
Mary Mandefield
Weekend presenter Mary Mandefield told us it's not just her music that makes her impactful. Mary explained: "Taylor Swift has so much impact as an artist because she makes a huge effort to stay connected with her fans. She listens to what her fans want and brings them music, looks, lyrics and shows to get excited about in each era.
"The success of her tour is down to her spending years putting the music and the fans first. Seeing her rise from small country singer in Nashville to being known worldwide is a huge source of inspiration to women and girls. I think if she wasn't Taylor, she would be a Swiftie herself!"
Maxine Knight
Hits Radio presenter Maxine is a huge Swiftie herself, and explained why she sees her as an inspiration. Maxine told us: "I am absolutely buzzing for Taylor to be over here for her 'Eras' tour. I'd class myself as a massive Swiftie because let's be honest – she knows how to write and release a huge pop track and she just relates so much to her fans.
"She's actually the same age as me and although I am mega jealous that she is smashing life in comparison, I just feel she is so relatable and knows how to engage with her audience through music. She's pretty inspirational and a great role model being the strong, incredible female she is!"
If you're excited for Taylor to be in the country then check out our guide for everything Taylor, from all the facts and figures about the singer, to her biggest collaborations and the biggest awards she's won.
Don't forget there's still a chance to win a pair of tickets to see her when she performs at Wembley, make sure keep listening to Hits Radio for details.
You can hear Taylor Swift songs throughout the day on Hits Radio.
Take a look through Taylor Swift's Eras you can expect to see on her tour:
'Lover' Era (2019)
If 'Reputation' was a departure from the good girl image, 'Lover' was the complete opposite. The album featured elements of folk, country and pop music and saw the singer have hits with 'Me!', 'You Need To Calm Down' and it's title track 'Lover'. In tune with the new sound, Taylor ditched the darker look, and traded it in for pink and blue pastels, perhaps proving that the 'old Taylor' wasn't dead. The singer's new look was very evident throughout in her music video for 'Me!'.
From the 'Lover' Era you can expect to see Taylor perform 'Miss Americana & the Heartbreak Prince', 'Cruel Summer', 'The Man', 'You Need To Calm Down' and 'Lover', during her 'Eras' tour.
'Fearless' Era (2009 - 2010)
'Fearless' is a country pop album and saw Taylor begin to move towards the pop genre. This is the album that really saw Taylor break through into the UK market with the release of her hit 'Love Story'. The singer coupled her heartfelt melodies with a new style of outfits which changed with her new music.
'Fearless' saw Taylor wearing sequinned dresses and ball gowns, moving away from her previous country look.
During her 'Eras' tour, you can expect to see Taylor perform three songs from her 'Fearless' Era, the title track, 'You Below With Me' and 'Love Story'.
'Red' Era (2012 - 2013)
'Red' spans several genres, pop, country and rock and saw Taylor leaving behind the iconic blonde curls of her earlier music. This album spawned several big hits for Taylor, including UK Top 10 singles: 'We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together', 'I Knew You Were Trouble', '22' and 'Everything Has Changed' with Ed Sheeran.
Along with these huge pop tunes, Taylor's look was changing with her now iconic red lipstick and high-waisted shorts and 50s style, becoming more mature, along with her music.
Fans will be pleased to hear that Taylor performs 'We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together', 'I Knew You Were Trouble', '22' and 'All Too Well' during her 'Eras' tour.
'Speak Now' Era (2010 - 2012)
With the release of 'Speak Now', Taylor's fans got to see the singer continue with her country music, but now with a more pop feel. She also introduced them to pop rock and power pop in this era. This album reached Number 6 on the UK chart and spent four weeks in the Top 40. Her highest charting song in the UK was 'Mine'.
In line with her move towards pop, her style changed and became more glam, with influences from the theatre and musicals, with Broadway inspiring her world tour, which took place in 2011/12.
During her 'Eras' tour, Taylor has chosen to perform 'Enchanted'.
'Reputation' Era (2017 - 2018)
Inspired by hit TV show Game of Thrones, Taylor's album 'Reputation' was her darkest yet. Both in terms of its sound, and the outfits she wore. Taylor's album, included hits such as her UK Number 1 'Look What You Made Me Do' and '...Ready for It?'. The album was created after Taylor took a year away from the limelight, and during that time she developed a very contrasting look to her previous albums.
Returning to the public eye, Taylor got rid of the 'good girl' look, replacing her bright red lipstick, for a grungier dark red shade, coupled with sequinned bodysuits and oversized tops.
During her 'Eras' tour, Taylor performs '...Ready For It?', 'Delicate', 'Don't Blame Me', 'Look What You Made Me Do' from her 'Reputation' album.
'folklore' / 'evermore' Era (2020)
Recorded during lockdown, both 'folklore' and 'evermore' were released in 2020, and saw Taylor being inspired by folk songs, with a hint of indie. Despite not being able to tour her albums, the singer's style changed, seeing her swap the pastels for neutral colours, and tweeds.
During her 'Eras' tour, she performs eight songs from the two lockdown albums, 'cardigan', 'betty', 'champagne problems', 'august', 'illicit affairs', 'my tears ricochet', 'marjorie', and 'willow'.
'1989' Era (2014 - 2015)
'1989', named after the year of Taylor's birth, saw the singer move away from country, with her first fully pop album. The sound was very much inspired by 1980s synth-pop, and saw some of her catchiest hits to date, with the likes of 'Shake It Off', 'Blank Space', and 'Bad Blood'.
In terms of looks, Taylor opted for a short bob, and made the transition to a global super star putting on a spectacular show for her '1989 World Tour', which involved several costume changes.
As well as her hits listed above, fans can expect Taylor to perform 'Style' and 'Wildest Dreams' during her 'Eras' tour.
'The Tortured Poets Department' Era (2024)
Taking inspiration from her public heartbreak and her sense of identity, Taylor released her most recent album 'The Tortured Poets Department', while on her 'Eras' tour. The singer has now released several versions of her album, each featuring extra tracks. Overall the album has a much darker, mature theme than any that have been released before.
Despite being her most recent album, Taylor's set is not over after she performs 'But Daddy I Love Him', 'So High School', 'Who's Afraid of Little Old Me?', 'Down Bad', 'Fortnight', 'The Smallest Man Who Ever Lived' and 'I Can Do It With a Broken Heart'.
'Midnights' Era (2022 - 2023)
Taylor's album 'Midnights' tells the stories of '13 sleepless nights' throughout her life, and spawned her hits 'Anti-Hero', 'Lavender Haze' and 'Karma'. The album saw Taylor continue with her pop sound, with many critics calling it dream pop and bedroom pop.
The singer ends her epic 'Eras' tour set list with songs from her 'Midnights' Era, including: 'Lavender Haze', 'Anti-Hero', 'Midnight Rain', 'Vigilante Sh--t', 'Bejeweled', 'Mastermind', and 'Karma'.
Now read:
Taylor Swift: All your questions answered on the 'Cruel Summer' singer 🎶
Taylor Swift's albums: Facts and figures about her super successful records
Taylor Swift's Eras: From 'Fearless' to 'The Tortured Poets Department'