Our Two Cents
Our Two Cents
Our resident Taylor Swift super-fan weighs in on Friday's release of 'Red (Taylor's Version).'
For those of you who aren’t in tune with the Wizarding World of Taylor Swift (she is a wizard—you can’t deny it), Friday was the release day for Red (Taylor’s Version). The 30-song album is a 2-hour-and-11-minute conglomeration of re-releases of original songs from 2012’s Red (Deluxe Version), brand-new songs, a ten-minute version of fan favorite All Too Well, and a couple tracks she wrote back in the early twenty-teens but were recorded by other artists. This is the second album Taylor has re-recorded as part of an effort to reclaim the rights to her songs, and with 90.8 million global streams on Friday alone, Red (Taylor’s Version) broke the record for the most first-day Spotify streams for a female artist.
As if that weren’t enough, Taylor also released her self-directed All Too Well short film, featuring the 10-minute version of her same-named song (it had more than 28 millions views on YouTube as of Monday morning), AND announced the release of the “I Bet You Think About Me (Taylor’s Version) [From the Vault]” music video, directed by Blake Lively, which will go live today at 10am. (T-3 hours, people!)
Needless to say, Swifties were all too unwell this weekend.
On Friday, we checked in with Kelsey Fredricks, Saratoga Living editorial internship alum, Troy resident, and Taylor Swift mega-super-fan to see how she was coping.
Saratoga Living After Hours: Kelsey—we know from working with you that you’re the leading local expert on all things Taylor Swift. Give our readers a little insight into your Swiftie world.
Kelsey Fredricks: I am forever grateful to have met Taylor! She is truly such a kind, genuine and quick-witted spirit. I was invited to one of the Rhode Island reputation secret sessions in October 2017, and I also attended the reputation release party a few weeks later. Actually, tomorrow (November 13) marks four years since the release party. She did this thing on her Twitter during the release of her album Lover where she shared photos of her fans holding the physical album itself, and I was one of them, which absolutely caught me off guard as well. She is undeniably one of the most loving and generous celebrities and has a strong bond with her fans.
SLAH: How many times have you listened to Red (Taylor’s Version) so far?
KF: To avoid going into emotional overdrive (since, unlike in 2012, I am apparently now an adult who has to work on Taylor’s album release day), I’ve only listened to the album once so far. However, given that the weekend is upon us, I may click Begin Again on Spotify, oh, I don’t know… 13 times? Maybe 22? By the spring, maybe 1989 times? Just an estimate.
SLAH: Are you wearing red?
KF: HAHA, I am currently wearing my olive green reputation cropped pullover sweater, actually. I also may or may not be wearing the red “All Too Well” scarf from Taylor’s official merch site…
SLAH: Do you have a favorite song or lyric from the album?
KF: It’s so hard to choose a favorite, because so many of Taylor’s songs hold a special place in my heart—and in the hearts of her 13 kajillion other fans. She has this unique ability to reel fans in to her own feelings and keep them there, let her lyrics settle in, then remind people that they are going to be okay. That she’s been there too. If I had to choose, as a storyteller and lover of all the details, I’d go with “All Too Well (Taylor’s Version)” as my favorite, with “State of Grace (Taylor’s Version)” and “The Lucky One (Taylor’s Version)” as runners-up.
SLAH: What’s the general consensus about the album from the Swiftie world?
KF: The Swiftie World is incredibly proud of Taylor for speaking out for herself and how wrong it is that she doesn’t own the right to her own music. Taylor is such a force in the entertainment industry, as her devoted fans know all too well. In taking the step to re-record and release her albums as her own in entirety, Taylor is encouraging fans to be brave and Speak Now for themselves, while also using her platform to help other artists navigate the path towards securing and maintaining the rights to their own art.
SLAH: Any last thoughts?
KF: One of my favorite things about Red has always been the concept of her producing this album in her early 20s, when a lot of things seem to not be “falling down like pieces into place,” yet we can still find Starlight in the good and bad times—and how that runs parallel to the different rhythms, beats and stories within this album. As someone in my early 20s, I truly do feel “happy, free, confused and lonely at the same time,” and Taylor encapsulates my various emotions and experiences felt through this album’s mosaic of sad and happy moments. I’m happy to see more and more people are recognizing the power within Taylor’s words and her music.