Taylor Swift, the pop phenomenon, took the world by surprise when she dropped her albums Folklore and Evermore during the grim days of humanity. The albums were released during 2020 without much commercialization. From being a teenage icon to a pop star, the ‘cardigan’ song writer recently revealed her poetic side by the release of her two acclaimed albums.

Taylor Swift and her wise strategy

Unlike other prominent artists who spend huge sums for advertising their albums, Taylor Swift did not follow it this time. Instead, she surprised her fandom by announcing on all her social media handles that her 8th studio album Folklore would be released midnight.

While people had little to no time digesting the fact, it did not prevent them from buying the album, thus making it the best sold album of 2020. Now, without pressing foot on the brakes, by using the same strategy, she announced the release of her 9th studio album Evermore, naming it the sister album of Folklore.

The very short span between the release of the two albums (5 months) not only made fans happy, but boosted the sales of both of the albums. While folklore turned out to be the best sold album of 2020, Evermore, following it took the 2nd place. She once again proved that she herself is her sole competitor.

Follow the link to know the other time she proved the world that she was her competition:

https://www.billboard.com/articles/business/chart-beat/9428290/taylor-swift-folklore-billboard-200-number-1

Folklore(on the left) and Evermore album covers

Hands down, the best lyricist

It is safe to say that we all had ‘Darling I’m a nightmare dressed like a daydream‘ as our Instagram bio during the 1989 era. Taylor swift is not known just for her dreamy vocals, but also for her irresistible lyrical talent. She can write ‘Shake it off, I shake it off’ and she can write ‘But I’m a fire and I’ll keep your brittle heart warm , if your cascade ocean wave blues come’.

If you do not believe my words, take a peek at the second verse of her song ‘This is me trying’ from folklore:

They told me all of my cages were mental
So I got wasted like all my potential
And my words shoot to kill when I’m mad
I have a lot of regrets about that
I was so ahead of the curve, the curve became a sphere
Fell behind all my classmates and I ended up here
Pourin’ out my heart to a stranger
But I didn’t pour the whiskey

She explains her fallout so gracefully and honestly, I didn’t know until now that it can be written so!

The mental calm her albums gave during this pandemic

This pandemic broke down even the toughest of people. Being bound within four walls, not able to interact with your loved ones and more importantly, not able to even visit our sick friends and family took a devastating toll on the mental health of people regardless of the age factor. For students, the burden of online classes. For homemakers, the everlasting kitchen duty. For employees, the fear of being laid off.

To lament about these effects, I’d have to write a book! Us people, we create safe havens personal to us. Be it listening to your favorite music, reading your favorite book or even having a sound sleep, we try our best to cope up with a gloomy situation. For many people including myself, music has been the last resort. So Taylor did save my 2020!

Particularly, her song ‘Epiphany’ from Folklore details the calamitous experience faced by our frontline medical workers. It says that medics were taught to save lives, not hear the wailing of daughters and sons. Hearing the song made me want to question the mere existence of God if all this suffering is to be endured by people. Words have power. And Taylor meticulously used them to heal people.

Something med school did not cover
Someone’s daughter, someone’s mother
Holds your hand through plastic now
“Doc, I think she’s crashing out”
And some things you just can’t speak about

-Epiphany, album Folklore

So here’s to the queen who consumed our nights through her music. Someone who stripped every shred of the veil concealing the soul, making even the unbreakable ones, vulnerable. Achingly beautiful are the only words that remind me of the albums Folklore and Evermore.

Grateful to you Taylor, for, without you we wouldn’t have been able to believe that light exists at the end of the tunnel.