–Taylor Swift is featured in the Holiday issue of T Magazine. The country superstar went retro for the photoshoot and also sat down for a great interview for their Screen Test series. Take a look at Taylor’s spread below. (All Photos Courtesy of T Magazine)
In the interview, Taylor talks about when she first fell in love with Country music, her song “Hey Stephen,” and performing in front of crowds vs awards shows. In the written interview, she talks about her role in Valentine’s Day, Def Leppard and more. Check out some excerpts below and read the full interview HERE.
You grew up in Pennsylvania, and yet you fell in love with country music at a young age. What did you hear that attracted you to country?
LeAnn Rimes. I heard “Blue” by LeAnn Rimes, and that song resonated with me. It was nine years ago. She was young — around 14 — and I was about 10 when I heard it and she was doing these things that I could only dream about doing. There was something just so motivating about that.
How did your classmates regard your music?
I didn’t really have that many friends at school. Kids would just heckle me: “Oh, go sing that country beep.” It just dawned on me that I had to love being different or else I was going to end up being dark and angry and frustrated by school. Sometimes I felt like I was some sort of spy because I would go to school during the day, and then, after school, I had this life that was completely different. I definitely was more nervous walking into my first day of freshman year in high school than I was walking up to record labels and handing them my CD. In school, I learned to stop talking about music because they didn’t like it when I did. I led a double life. I kind of started to live in fear when I would sing the national anthem at the 76ers game. If there was a write-up about it the next day in our local paper, I knew it was gonna be a bad day at school for me.
Your mother loved Def Leppard. She played that nonstop when she was pregnant with you.
I love Def Leppard! It’s comforting for me to listen to them. I love a great song. If that great song is by 50 Cent, I’ll listen to it.
You recently finished filming a movie called “Valentine’s Day.” Did you like acting?
Yes, but it’s a small part. I play the kind of girl I didn’t like in high school. She’s forced to go to gym class and doesn’t want to be there. The director, Garry Marshall, was wonderful — and both of our lucky numbers are 13, so we talked about that most of the time.
Do you still sing karaoke?
No. But if I were to do karaoke, it would probably be something from “Grease” ! I’d sing “You’re the One That I Want” — or Def Leppard. Whenever I hear Def Leppard, I just freak out.
Yesterday, Taylor joined Taylor Lautner re-shooting scenes for the movie Valentine’s Day. The duo also enjoyed dinner and Menchies together. Pics at OceanUp.
Video Courtesy of NYTimes.com/TMagazine
