Growing up with Taylor Swift has been such a beautiful experience, and one standout time for us is definitely the 1989 era. She was on top of the world and becoming one of the most important pop artists of all time… and even then, 1989 (Taylor’s Version) is way more special. Here are five things about the 1989 (TV) era that have gone above and beyond!
The First-Week Stats
One of the best parts of Taylor Swift release season is when you find out a new record she broke and instantly go, “That’s unreal. Of course she did.” Then you scroll down your feed a bit and find another record she broke. Then another. And another. Her success always blows our minds, especially when she’s out breaking her own records over and over!
Make sure you’re sitting down, because hearing about all the success of 1989 (Taylor’s Version) so far will knock you off your feet. First off, it hit #1 on the Billboard 200 and beat the first-week sales numbers for the original 1989 album, which means it’s the first Taylor’s Version project to have a bigger debut than the OG. She did that with 1.6 million units in the United States and over 3.5 million around the world, which also makes it the biggest debut for a rerecorded album ever!
We all knew 1989 was that album, but the numbers are just solidifying that. It’s now the first album to debut with a million units in its first week two times! It’s also Taylor’s milestone 13th chart-topper on the Billboard 200. On the streaming front, 1989 (TV) got the biggest debut of the year on Spotify and helped give Taylor the biggest streaming day for an artist in Spotify history. It’s dominating on Amazon Music as well, earning the biggest number of first-day global streams for any album ever.
Meanwhile, eight of the songs on the album debuted in the top ten of the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart: ‘Is It Over Now?’ at #1, ‘Now That We Don’t Talk,’ ‘Sl*t!,’ ‘Say Don’t Go,’ ‘Bad Blood,’ ‘Style,’ and ‘Suburban Legends.’ #6 on the chart was occupied by none other than ‘Cruel Summer,’ which has finally been getting its moment in the spotlight after coming out in 2019!
It Makes Our All-Time Faves Even Better
It’s such a weird feeling to get to listen to some of your favorite songs ever for the first time again, but a lot of times, 1989 (Taylor’s Version) feels like a whole new album! Not only are Taylor’s vocals so much more powerful now, but a lot of songs got crisper production that makes them even more impressive. Some standout examples for us are ‘Out Of The Woods,’ ‘Style,’ and ‘I Know Places.’
The Announcement
When Taylor’s Eras Tour show on August 9th (AKA 8/9) rolled around, the fandom just decided that it would be important somehow. And if you’ve been a Swiftie for a while, you know we tend to just be clowning more often than not. But as Taylor revealed a shimmery blue gown for the Speak Now set, then a flowy blue dress for the folklore set, and finally a sparkly blue co-ord for the 1989 set – yes, the costume we were begging for from the start of the tour – we knew something was really up this time. Even just watching from home on a blurry livestream!
Then, finally, we arrived at the acoustic section of the evening. You know you’re in danger when Taylor Nation goes live on Instagram. Taylor put a royal blue dress on over the 1989 outfit and officially announced that 1989 would be the next rerecorded album to come out! She went on to play ‘New Romantics’ as the acoustic surprise song of the night, as if LA wasn’t already lucky enough.
‘Sl*t!’
Every Swiftie remembers where they were when the vault teaser videos returned, this time in a light blue tone. But where the Fearless and Red vaults got scrambled letters, the 1989 vault got just a few letters (and a punctuation mark), one at a time. Those letters spelled out ’Sl*t!’
Aside from being a gorgeous pop song in general, ‘Sl*t!’ feels particularly special because it’s Taylor’s way of reclaiming a word that was used against her so often from a young age, all while reclaiming her work. There have been wayyyy too many times over the years when she was shamed for dating like a normal person, and when her work was reduced to being only about breakups. She’s addressing how she felt about it without letting it get her down anymore!
The Photoshoot
With Taylor’s Version albums, Taylor isn’t just reclaiming her music. She’s taking back her creative vision and the memories we’ve made together along the way! The 1989 (Taylor’s Version) photoshoot leans towards a sunny, beachy vibe rather than the sleek NYC aesthetic we originally got. It’s such a cool way to highlight another side of the album while giving us something new to look forward to.
Sometimes it can be sad to see the old album photoshoots, knowing they might be lost. But this time, Taylor got to take part of the original era along for the journey! The special edition CDs on her website have recreations of the polaroids from the original 1989 album, with outtakes from the original photoshoot. We’re so grateful that we can bring some of the Old Taylor forward with us, in Taylor’s possession where it belongs!
What do you love most about 1989 (Taylor’s Version)? Which vault track is your favorite? Let us know in the comments below or hit us up on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter!
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