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Now that Taylor Swift is one of the biggest pop artists on the planet - if not the biggest - it's easy to forget just how entrenched she once was within the country music scene.
When making an appearance at the 2008 CMA Awards, for instance, Swift was cementing herself as one of the genre's next-big-things. And on her social media - which, at the time, was primarily MySpace, Swift was documenting how excited she was to be surrounded by some of the most respected names in country music.
For instance, Swift recalls the experience of hanging out with a legend of the genre, George Strait, while backstage getting ready to present an award at the Nashville ceremony.
Via MySpace, Swift revealed how the King of Country had a great sense of humour, “While I was backstage before presenting the Best New Artist award, I talked to George Strait for a while. He's so incredibly cool. So down-to-earth and funny”.
She went on, “I think it should be known that George Strait has an awesome, dry, subtle sense of humour. Then I went back out into the crowd and watched the rest of the show”.
Of course, Swift had already met Strait before, with the ‘Tim McGraw’ singer-songwriter opening up for the Texas icon across a number of dates on his 2007 North America tour.
A couple of years later, Swift would perform a stunning rendition of his much-loved song, ‘Run’, as part of the ACM Artist of the Decade All-Star Concert honouring Strait.
Elsewhere in her post-CMAs MySpace meditation, Swift touches on what a special experience it was getting to meet Shania Twain, “I met Shania and it was AWESOME”.
After listing a few memorable exchanges from the show, Swift made it clear that crossing paths with Shania was the crowning moment, “But the real moment that brought on this wave of gratitude was when Shania Twain HERSELF walked up and introduced herself to me. Shania Twain, as in.. The reason I wanted to do this in the first place. Shania Twain, as in.. the most impressive and independent and confident and successful female artist to ever hit country music”.
The ‘Cruel Summer’ chart-topper heartwarmingly expanded, “She walked up to me and said she wanted to meet me and tell me I was doing a great job. She was so beautiful, guys. She really IS that beautiful. All the while, I was completely star struck. After she walked away, I realized I didn’t have my camera. Then I cried”.
Swift ends the note with a heartfelt message about why she loves country music so much, “You know, last night made me feel really great about being a country music fan in general. Country music is the place to find reality in music, and reality in the stars who make that music. There’s kindness and goodness and….honesty in the people I look up to, and knowing that makes me smile. I’m proud to sing country music, and that has never wavered. The reason for the being.. nights like last night”.
Even though Swift then made her name in pop, it's evident through recent releases like ‘I Knew It, I Knew You’ that the Pennsylvania phenom still holds a deep reverence for country music. With Swift performing to the CMA Awards next month, we hope fans that know her primarily as a pop artist keep these words from her 2008 MySpace page in their mind as she returns to the genre she made her start in, rather than lamenting the CMA's inclusion of another ‘non-country’ act.
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