Taylor Swift’s Label Lashes Out at Critics of Grammy Performance
Photo: Kravitz/FilmMagic
The CEO of Taylor Swift’s label Big Machine Records, Scott Borchetta, has spoken out in support of his Album of the Year-winning star and defended her Grammy night duet with Stevie Nicks, which has taken a lot of criticism for being off-key. “Maybe she’s not the best technical singer, but she’s probably the best emotional singer because everybody else who gets up there and is technically perfect, people don’t seem to want more of it,” Borchetta told The Tennessean. He added to the AP, “This is not American Idol. This is not a competition of getting up and seeing who can sing the highest note. This is about a true artist and writer and communicator. It’s not about that technically perfect performance.”
Look back at Swift’s big Grammy night in photos.
While Swift’s performance of her Valentine’s Day single “Today Was a Fairytale,” “Rihannon” and “You Belong With Me” was just a footnote to her four Grammy wins, Borchetta’s comments have returned the less-than-stellar medley to the spotlight — and resulted in an angry response from American Idol winner Kelly Clarkson.
“I think [the critics] are missing the whole voice of a generation that is happening right in front of them. Maybe they are jealous or can’t understand that,” Borchetta said, “but obviously the people that she talks to are engaged with her. No one is perfect on any given day. Maybe in that moment we didn’t have the best night, but in the same breath, maybe we did,” referring to Fearless‘ Album of the Year win.
Check out all of Rolling Stone’s Grammy coverage.
While no one is going to confuse Swift’s vocal talents for Celine Dion’s, Borchetta might have a point when he calls Swift the voice of her generation, as the 20-year-old singer is outselling all her peers — and pretty much everyone else in the music industry — and the Album of the Year win for Fearless, with Swift being the youngest ever to win the award, seems to validate Swift’s impact. “The facts say she is the undisputed best communicator that we’ve got,” Borchetta told The Tennessean. “When she says something, when she sings something, when she feels something, it affects more people than anybody else.”
Check out photos of Taylor’s swift rise to stardom.
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Remember, Toto was a big winner at the Grammys.
“Character cannot be developed in ease and quiet. Only through experience of trial and suffering can the soul be strengthened, ambition inspired and success achieved.”
Taylor rules….please be nice!
So, Taylor you dragged me thru the mud in public since the release of Fearless 11/08 for breaking up with you. Then a month ago on SNL you bragged about how gr8 your career is going and again made fun of me and you added Kanye to your monologue song too. To answer your question I’m doing much better since you have been exposed. The Emporer has no clothes on.
Not that we should get off-topic, but I ironically care very little for Lady Gaga. Every song I’ve heard sounds virtually the same – the same grossly mind-numbing beat in the background, and I think her outfits were interesting for about a day. Adam Lambert sang with famous people, too. That’s not a credible defense of a musician’s talent and “genius.” I don’t care enough about the Grammy’s to see who was nominated for Album of the Year because approximately a bazillion albums were produced that were better than the Top 40 albums considered for the award. If the winner should really be “musical geniuses,” then Bon Iver should have won Album of the year for 2008. I don’t know who did, but it wasn’t Bon Iver. Why? Because the Grammy’s awards music for people without an attention span or an interest in thought provocation. Huge generalization on my part, I know. But yeah. So we disagree, oh well. I will slowly back out of this now. Take care.
to Cola21:
Please. Nobody DESPISES Taylor Swift because she has done nothing wrong on a personal front. What people are despising is that someone who can’t sing and can’t write a good song to save their lives end up winning an Album Of The Year when their were albums nominated in that same category that were soooooooo much better in quality and were made by people waaaaaaaaaay more talented than Taylor. This has nothing to do with knocking down someone who’s on top just because they’re on top. I mean, Lady Gaga’s on top, and yeah she has some haters like any successful artist does, but no one would’ve been upset had she won AOTY, because she’s actually talented, and her music is far edgier than anything Taylor could ever make. And there are artists even more talented than that out there who aren’t getting a shout-out from the record labels because they don’t fit the mold of a cookie-cutter pop star, never mind the fact that they are probably musical geniuses that no one even knows of. Meanwhile you have mediocre artists like Taylor making a fool out of herself on live performances, especially next to legends like Stevie Nicks. On the other hand, Lady Gaga performed with Elton John and she held her own. Beyonce performed with Tina Turner and Prince on separate occasions at the Grammys and she held her own with both of them as well. These women have talent, and work hard and deserve their success. Taylor just leaves you shaking your head asking “why?”
And as for the lyrics and the Jackson 5, the lyrics to their songs were SIMPLE, but not STUPID. There is a difference. You don’t have to write a complicated song in order for it to be good, but it has to be unique, witty, and clever. Taylor’s songs are NONE of these things, they’re generic and plain. They make “Hit Me Baby One More Time” look like a Radiohead song. Also, none of the songs by the Jackson 5 were written by Michael, although he was way younger than Taylor when he sang them, so even if the lyrics were dumb at least he’d have an excuse. But he didn’t start writing until he went solo. He released his album “Off The Wall” at age 20, same age as Taylor is now. Michael only wrote 3 songs on it, but the lyrical content far supersedes anything Taylor has written.
Voice of a generation? What a joke that is! Yeah lipstick and short skirts that should resonate for decades with music fans. Awfully young to be writing such heavy lyrics. Alanis Morrisette at age 21 and her album Jagged Little Pill now that was a real album with deep lyrics and a real singer. Today is crap and Borcheesecake is riding his gravy train to the bank because he already knows the show is over. You dont come back from this kind of backlash. She might be cute but she doesnt deserve the awards and everyone knows it. Thanks Mom and Dads across America for buying your kids this silly album and making America look stupid once again.
smithsj you obviously haven’t heard much of Stevie’s duets and backup vocals with other artists! She harmonizes incredibly with other singers. If you’re just wanting to stick up for Taylor Swift, fine, but listen to some of Stevie’s stuff with other artists and you’ll want to take back your statement
She has minimal talent, and evidently can’t really even carry carry a tune. Many of you say “oh but she writes her own stuff” Who cares? it’s crap, directed at 15 year old girls with boy problems. She is not even fit to carry the shoes of say Reba Mackintire or Patty Loveless,they are still around 25 years later, ten to one taylor swift will not
I felt sorry for Stevie Nicks having to sing with her. Don’t worry Stevie you a ICON and always will be. Taylor sounds like crap live so it’s not your fault.
Jalley Oscar, I have been saying pretty much the same thing myself. Taylor performed at last year’s Grammys— with Miley Cyrus as her duet partner that time around. She sounded just as awful as she did this year, and in virtually every performance prior to last Sunday. Yet it is only now that people are complaining. While I’m glad people are finally getting a wake up call about this so-called “talent”, it seems to me that this will be all in vain. Remember how long it’s been since people first complained about Britney Spears lip-syncing? And what damage has it caused to her career? None. She’s still popular to this day. I have a feeling Taylor will come out unaffected by this as well. Add to the fact that she writes her own songs and plays instruments (albeit terribly), she’s even got more of an upperhand. Look at all the comments defending her. They all use the “well at least she writes her own songs, plays instruments and is a good role model so she doesn’t dress like a slut like Lady Gaga, Pink and Beyonce” excuse. It’s pathetic, really. And it’s so easy to see why Taylor can be successful when you’ve got idiots like Taylor Swift fans who buy music based on image and not actual quality. Like some dumbass on another post who said Taylor was a better musician than Beyonce because she plays instruments. Last I checked, Taylor only plays three chords on guitar, and isn’t known for being a Chopin on a piano, either. Her songwriting is mediocre, teenybopper tripe and there’s the fact that she can’t sing or dance. Meanwhile, Beyonce can sing and perform her ass off. Nobody’s complaining about Beyonce’s performance or her six Grammy wins, but everyone is calling into question Taylor’s success because of her lack of talent.