TAYLOR SWIFT WRAPS AUSTRALIAN TOUR
WITH RAVE REVIEWS AND #1 ALBUM
Nashville, TN – February 16, 2010 – Taylor Swift kicked of her
FEARLESS 2010 Tour with seven sold-out shows in Australia last
week, and both critics and fans were notably impressed by her
dynamic two-hour show. She headed for Japan over the weekend,
having earned a stack of strong reviews from the Australian press, as
well as #1 spots atop Australia’s ARIA and iTunes Sales charts.
Taylor garnered praise from top critics at every stop on her Australian
tour:
Adelaide: “We've had the booty-liscous, the lip-syncher and the
outright gaga roll through town, but Adelaide was in the presence of a
true pop princess whose charisma and sheer innocence was
mesmerising. It was refreshing to witness a No.1 artist dedicate her
heart and soul to the delivery of her songs, rather than just her dance
moves....and it was clear that this is a musical talent who is only at
the beginning of her career. Adelaide has not seen the last of Taylor
Swift.” –Adelaide Now
Melbourne: “In a world of manufactured teen pop, Swift is a refreshing
antidote. She's squeaky clean, dodges scandal, and has a positivity
and professionalism that belies her years. Her songs are simple but
effective…and the atmosphere was as electric as any boy band
concert. The night's best moment came when Swift sang Hey
Stephen in a stage near the back row and slowly worked her way
back to the front for the next few songs, enthusiastically hugging
dozens of fans along the way. It was a simple gesture but one that
instantly set her apart from most of her contemporaries.” —The
Herald-Sun
Sydney: “Swift was never less than on-message and in control…..and
she has a belter setting which kicks arse. Structurally, melodically
and lyrically [her songs] feel like the work of a talented teenager, not a
Music Row hack, and her audience is new school, and screamingly
happy. You couldn't help but be enchanted by her.” — Morning Herald
Newcastle: “GRAMMY award winning US singer Taylor Swift was back
on her country pop throne at the Newcastle Entertainment Centre last
night. Throughout her concert Swift shifted between a country twang
and a rocker's roar, all the while commanding the dancers and
musicians on the large Newcastle stage.” –The Herald
Brisbane: “Most appealing about Swift is the strength of emotion that
runs through her self-penned songs. Her voice was not flawless...but
it was strong and true. When she sings, it's believable. She seems
utterly at home in an arena setting and comfortable with countless
costume changes, and she effortlessly bounds across the enormous
stage.... and takes to the crowd mid-show, walking through the
throng, hugging small girls, signing autographs and slipping gifts of
glittery bracelets on to her wrists.” —The Australian
Following the tour, Taylor’s FEARLESS album held the #1 spot atop
Australia’s ARIA Country Albums Sales Chart and her self-titled CD
(released in 2006) moved to #6. FEARLESS also held the #3 spot on
the ARIA all-genre albums chart. At iTunes Australia, Taylor had 8 of
the Top 10 tracks on the Country chart, including positions 1-7.
FEARLESS and Taylor Swift were the #1 and #2 Country albums,
respectively.
Taylor continues the FEARLESS 2010 Tour tomorrow night at Tokyo’s
Zepp Arena, before returning home to kick off the US portion of the
tour March 4th in Tampa.
In other Taylor news, she was nominated for two Kids’ Choice
Awards this week: Favorite Female Singer and Favorite Song (for “You
Belong With Me”). The Kids’ Choice Awards air live on Nickelodeon
on March 23rd. Additionally, Taylor makes her feature film acting
debut in Valentine’s Day, which opened last week at the top of the
North American box office charts with record-setting Valentine's Day
weekend ticket sales.
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NIELSEN SOUNDSCAN LISTS TAYLOR SWIFT
AS THE TOP-SELLING DIGITAL ARTIST IN HISTORY
TAYLOR HAS YEAR’S TOP-SELLING ALBUM AND YEAR’S MOST-
PLAYED SONG
TAYLOR WINS PEOPLE’S CHOICE AWARD
FOR FAVORITE FEMALE ARTIST
Nashville, TN – January 7, 2010 – With over 24.3 million digital tracks
sold to date, Taylor Swift is the top-selling digital artist in music
history, according to sales figures released yesterday by Nielsen
SoundScan. In addition, her FEARLESS album was 2009’s top-seller,
with sales last year in excess of 3.2 million copies, and Taylor
claimed both the #1 and #2 positions atop Nielsen’s BDS Top 10
Most Played Songs chart (all genres), with “You Belong With Me” and
“Love Story,” respectively. She also topped the all format 2009 Top 10
Artist Airplay chart with over 1.29 million song detections, and the Top
10 Artist Internet Streams chart with more than 46 million song plays.
FEARLESS was also the top-selling album of 2008, and Taylor is the
youngest solo artist ever to top the year-end sales chart. FEARLESS,
now quintuple-platinum, also topped Billboard’s 2009 all-genre Top
200 Albums chart and was named Country Album of the Year by the
editors of iTunes. Taylor’s self-titled debut album, released in 2006,
currently holds the record for Billboard’s longest charting album this
century, and she is tied with the Beatles and Mariah Carey for
Billboard’s Most Top 20 Debuts.
Taylor finished 2009 not only with the best-selling album, she was
named Billboard’s Artist of the Year, as well as Entertainer of the Year
by the Associated Press. She topped People magazine’s Most
Intriguing People of 2009 list, was named a Person Who Mattered by
the editors of Time magazine, a Person of the Year by NBC, and was
featured as one of Rolling Stone’s 100 People Changing America.
People named her one of 2009’s 10 Best Dressed Celebrities and
also one of the year’s Most Beautiful People.
Taylor started off the New Year with a big win at last night’s People’s
Choice Awards in Los Angeles, taking home the all-genre Favorite
Female Artist award. Earlier in the day she made a surprise
appearance at CES in Las Vegas, where Sony Chairman & CEO Sir
Howard Stringer introduced her as the newest Brand Ambassador for
Sony Electronics.
Taylor’s next television performance will be on the 52nd Annual
Grammy Awards, broadcast live on CBS on January 31st. Taylor is
nominated for eight Grammies, including Record of the Year, Album
of the Year, and Song of the Year. She makes her feature film acting
debut in Garry Marshall’s Valentine’s Day, set for US release on
February 12th, and takes her sold-out FEARLESS tour back on the
road in Australia next month. Her line of American Greetings cards
will also hit stores in February.
For a complete listing of dates and updated information on the 2010
FEARLESS tour, please visit: www.taylorswift.com.
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TAYLOR SWIFT WINS FOUR GRAMMY AWARDS,
INCLUDING HISTORY-MAKING ALBUM OF THE YEAR
Nashville, TN – February 1, 2010 –Taylor Swift can now add Multiple
Grammy Award Winner to her list of accolades, as she took home
four awards from last night’s 52nd Annual Grammy Awards
ceremony, including the night’s top honor, Album of The Year.
Taylor, who turned 20 in December, is the youngest artist in history
to win the music industry’s coveted top prize. She is also the first
solo female country winner ever of the award, and the first solo
female winner in more than a decade.
Taylor also won the Grammy for Best Country Album for “Fearless,”
and took home trophies for Best Country Song and Best Country
Vocal Performance for her hit “White Horse.”
Taylor, who accepted her Album of the Year Award from John
Legend and Carlos Santana, called her big win a “beautiful,
beautiful surprise,” saying from the stage, “Thank you so much! I
just hope you know how much this means to me, and to Nathan
[Chapman], my producer, and to all these musicians that you see
on this stage, that we get to take this back to Nashville! This is for
my dad: Thank you for all those times you said I could do whatever I
wanted in life. And my mom: You’re my best friend…..All of us, when
we’re 80 years old and we’re telling the same stories again and
again to our grandkids… this is the story we’ll be telling.”
Earlier in the night, Taylor thanked her record label, Big Machine, for
letting her write all of the songs on her records, and songwriter Liz
Rose, her co-writer on “White Horse,” for “writing songs with me
when she had absolutely no reason to do so.”
Taylor’s “Fearless” album has proved to be a favorite with fans,
critics and industry voters, selling more than 5 million CDs,
receiving massive critical acclaim, and sweeping the awards
categories this season. In addition to winning Grammy awards for
Album of the Year and Best Country Album, the project was lauded
as Album of the Year by the Country Music Association and the
Academy of Country Music, and was named Favorite Country Album
at the American Music Awards.
Immediately following last night’s show, Taylor and her band left for
LAX, headed to Australia and Japan, where she will perform several
sold-out shows before returning to the States to launch her
FEARLESS 2010 tour March 4th in Tampa.
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Craig Morgan Voices New PSAs for Smokey Bear’s
Wildfire Prevention Campaign
Radio PSAs Available Today, in time for Fire Prevention Week
The Advertising Council, in partnership with the USDA Forest Service
and the National Association of State Foresters (NASF), announced
today the launch of a new series of radio public service
advertisements (PSAs) featuring country star and Grand Ole Opry
member Craig Morgan, designed to provide critical information to
Americans about their role in wildfire prevention as an extension of
the Wildfire Prevention campaign featuring Smokey Bear. Morgan has
recorded two 15- and one 30-second radio PSAs that are being
distributed to radio stations across the nation today to coincide with
Fire Prevention Week. Radio stations can locate the PSAs on Ad
Council’s fulfillment website, http://psacentral.adcouncil.org, starting
tomorrow (October 8th).
Morgan, whose single “Bonfire,” is in the Top 20 and rapidly climbing
the Country Radio charts, felt it was important to pair a strong
prevention message with the celebratory song and volunteered his
time to the Ad Council. “When my buddies and I wrote this song, we
were talking and laughing about fun times with family and friends,
and that’s what bonfires are all about,” says Morgan. “But, anybody
who knows me knows that I’m a big outdoors guy, and any time you
build any sort of fire outside, safety has to be your number one
concern. That’s why I wanted to work with the Ad Council to get this
message out. Wildfire Prevention remains one of the most critical
issues affecting our country, and whether it’s a bonfire after the big
game, or a cookout when you’re hunting or fishing, you need to
contain your fire and be sure it is 100 percent extinguished before you
leave.”
Research shows that many Americans believe that lightning starts
most wildfires. In fact, more than 88 percent of wildfires nationwide
are started by humans and the majority of these fires are accidental.
The principle causes are campfires left unattended, trash burning on
windy days, careless discarding of smoking materials and BBQ coals
and operating equipment without spark arrestors.
Morgan’s PSAs provide valuable tips on fire extinguishing, and direct
audiences to visit the campaign website, www.smokeybear.com, for
more information about wildfire prevention. The website includes
sections devoted to fire prevention tips, including how to build and
extinguish safe fires and how to protect your home if you live near a
fire prone area. Visitors can also take a pledge to practice fire safety.
Since his introduction on August 9, 1944, Smokey Bear has been a
recognized symbol of protection of America’s forests from fire. His
message about forest fire prevention has helped to significantly
reduce the number of acres burned annually by wildfires. Despite the
campaign’s success, during the past ten years, an average of 6.5
million acres of land in the U.S. was burned each year by wildfires.
According to a recent Ad Council survey, Smokey Bear and his
famous words of wisdom – “Only You Can Prevent Forest Fires” – are
recalled by 3 out of 4 adults without prompting.
The Ad Council is distributing the new PSAs to radio stations
nationwide this week. Per the Ad Council’s model, the PSAs are
airing in advertising time that is donated by the media. Since 1980,
the Wildfire Prevention campaign has received more than $1 billion in
donated advertising time and space. The campaign is the longest-
running PSA campaign in U.S. history.
USDA Forest Service
Established in 1905, the Forest Service is an agency of the U.S.
Department of Agriculture. The Forest Service manages 193 million
acres of public lands in national forests and grasslands, which is an
area equivalent to the size of Texas. The Forest Service is also the
largest forestry research organization in the world, and provides
technical and financial assistance to States, Tribes, communities,
and non-industrial private forest landowners.
Gifford Pinchot, the first Chief of the Forest Service, summed up the
mission of the Forest Service— “to provide the greatest amount of
good for the greatest amount of people in the long run.”
National Association of State Foresters
The National Association of State Foresters is comprised of the
directors of state and territorial agencies and the District of Columbia.
Through public-private partnership, NASF seeks to advance
sustainable forestry, conservation, and protection of forestlands and
their associated resources.
The Advertising Council
The Ad Council (www.adcouncil.org) is a private, non-profit
organization that marshals talent from the advertising and
communications industries, the facilities of the media, and the
resources of the business and non-profit communities to produce,
distribute and promote public service campaigns on behalf of non-
profit organizations and government agencies in issue areas such as
improving the quality of life for children, preventive health, education,
community well-being, environmental preservation and strengthening
families.
Craig Morgan
Craig Morgan is signed to Sony Entertainment Nashville’s BNA
Records label, and released his fifth studio album, That’s Why, last
fall. His current hit, the anthemic “Bonfire,” is the fastest-rising of his
career. Last year Morgan received one of country music’s highest
honors – he was inducted into the membership of the Grand Ole
Opry. Morgan has made more than 150 appearances on The Grand
Ole Opry, and plays over 200 sold-out concerts a year. He spent ten
years on active duty in the U.S. Army before launching his music
career, and makes a point to perform as often as possible at US
military installations both in the US and abroad. He lives just outside
of Nashville with his wife Karen and their four children.
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TAYLOR SWIFT TO EXTEND
FEARLESS ARENA TOUR INTO 2010
Nashville, TN – October 8, 2009 – Taylor Swift, who this weekend
will play the final four shows of her groundbreaking, sold-out
FEARLESS 2009 Tour, announced today that she will bring the
FEARLESS Tour back to the fans in 2010. Tickets for the Taylor
Swift FEARLESS 2010 tour will go on sale later this month, with
ticket prices starting at $25.
Taylor, who at 19 is the youngest artist in history to be nominated
for the Country Music Association’s prestigious Entertainer of the
Year Award, will kick off her FEARLESS 2010 Tour on February 4th
in Brisbane, Australia and play five shows Down Under before
beginning her North American run on March 4th in Tampa, Florida.
In 2010, Taylor will headline 37 shows in 29 cities in 22 states and
provinces in the US and Canada.
“I’m so excited to take the Fearless tour back out on the road again
in 2010!” says Taylor. “This year’s tour has been so much fun and
even more unforgettable than I ever imagined. The fans have been
so amazing, and I’m thrilled to play in new cities and see even
more of my fans on the 2010 FEARLESS Tour!”
The Taylor Swift FEARLESS 2009 TOUR was the hottest ticket of
the year, wowing fans and critics worldwide. Capacity crowds
packed arenas around the globe -- every show on the tour sold out
within minutes, including one at Madison Square Garden in one
minute, and one at Los Angeles’ STAPLES center in just two
minutes. The blockbuster tour was chronicled in the one-hour
primetime NBC network special Dateline: On Tour With Taylor Swift.
Here’s what some of the nation’s top critics had to say about Taylor
Swift and the FEARLESS 2009 Tour:
“Swift’s fans don’t just believe in her savvy songwriting and
gracious, magnetic stage presence. They trust her as a peer. And if
the unerring pleasures of her set – and the crowd’s Beatles-sized
reactions – were any indication, they’ll be trusting her for a long
time.” – The Los Angeles Times
“Country queen Taylor Swift charms the L.A. crowd.” – The
Hollywood Reporter
“Swift shoots to superstardom. Her two-hour set at the sold-out
arena showed a level of creativity – and more important, sincerity -
which many other acts don’t reach for decades, if ever. Watch out
Madonna, Britney Spears, Mick Jagger and Bono. There is a new
master of the stage in pop music moving quickly up the ladder, and
the scary thing is that she is only 19 years old.” – The (Phoenix)
Arizona Republic
“Wow, what a talent.” – The (Jacksonville) Florida Times-Union
“Swift’s two-hour set definitively proved that she's hardly just
another flash in the pan of bubbly blond singers. The concert,
gorgeously produced and featuring everything from an onstage
waterfall to a fairytale castle and dancers in Renaissance garb,
perfectly showcased Swift's poignant, clever songwriting, as well as
her confident vocals and a stage presence way beyond her years.”
– The Dallas Morning News
“The concert was a high-tech extravaganza….but the music cut
through the spectacle. At the Garden Swift sang with punch and
confidence, …and what really shone were the songs themselves. I’
ve seen a lot of live music over the years, but few moments of
symbiosis between performer and audience like an arena full of
girls singing along to Swift’s gentle pep talk.” – Slate
“The two-hour, three-act spectacle doesn’t slow down.” – Rolling
Stone
“Swift delivers delight at the Garden. For nearly two hair-flinging,
spangly gowned hours, Swift showed why she's all set to be the
biggest star around. Swift writes like Everygirl and sings like her
hero. That's a combination that can't be beat. A delightful
performance….her sold-out show felt more like a victory lap.” –
New York Newsday
Taylor’s good friend, American Idol finalist Kellie Pickler, again
joins Taylor as a featured artist on all of the North American
FEARLESS dates, and top selling new artist of 2009 Gloriana
returns to open all of the shows.
The Taylor Swift FEARLESS 2010 tour will include the following:
DATE CITY
February 4 Brisbane, Australia
February 6 Sydney, Australia
February 8 Newcastle, Australia
February 10 Melbourne, Australia
February 12 Adelaide, Australia
March 4 Tampa, FL
March 5 Orlando, FL
March 7 Sunrise, FL
March 10 Austin, TX
March 11 Dallas, TX
March 12 Corpus Christi, TX
March 18 Philadelphia, PA
March 19 Philadelphia, PA
March 20 Charlottesville, VA
March 26 Detroit, MI
March 27 Detroit, MI
March 28 Cincinnati, OH
March 31 Oklahoma City, OK
April 1 Wichita, KS
April 2 Kansas City, MO
April 6 Denver, CO
April 7 Denver, CO
April 10 Fresno. CA
April 11 San Jose, CA
April 15 Los Angeles, CA
April 16 Los Angeles, CA
April 29 Lexington, KY
April 30 Columbia, SC
May 1 Raleigh, NC
May 6 Des Moines, IA
May 7 St. Paul, MN
May 8 Moline, IL
May 12 Newark, NJ
May 13 Newark, NJ
May 14 Uniondale, NY
May 15 Uniondale, NY
May 20 Ottawa, ON
May 21 Toronto, ON
May 22 Toronto, ON
May 25 Houston, TX
May 26 Houston, TX
June 2 Washington, DC
Venues for the tour stops will be announced in the coming weeks.
Tour information will be continually updated on www.taylorswift.com
and www.myspace.com/taylorswift.
The North American FEARLESS Tour is produced and promoted by
The Messina Group (TMG.) TMG is a partner of AEG Live, one of the
top live entertainment companies in the world, which produces
world tours featuring internationally renowned artists and regional
concerts and festivals. The Australian shows on the FEARLESS
Tour are promoted by Michael Coppel Presents.
Taylor’s Big Machine Records album releases, Fearless and her
self-titled debut, have topped 10 million copies in combined total
sales, plus an additional 20 million paid song downloads. Big
Machine will release an enhanced version of the Fearless album, a
CD/DVD dual set entitled Fearless Platinum Edition, on October
27th.
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