Fearless
November 11, 2008
Table of Contents
Background and Recording
«I've been very selfish about my songs. I had this dream of this project [Taylor Swift] coming out for so many years now that I just stockpiled. I'm so happy that I did because now we have a second album full of songs and a third album full of songs, and I don't have to lift a finger.»
Lyrics and Themes
Despite her revelation of not having kissed a male in two years, Taylor said the album was not wrung dry of such inspiration because she still underwent breakups and felt its core emotions. Adding it did not “take much [for her] to get that sort of emotion out in a song”, she explained physical intimacy did not have to resort to kissing to feel disappointment, frustration, or heartbreak. Despite having written numerous new songs, she decided to also include previously written tracks, believing there were stories she did not have the opportunity to put out with Taylor Swift, and still desired to.


Title Significance
«This album is called Fearless, and I guess I'd like to clarify why we chose that as the title. To me, Fearless is not the absence of fear. It's not being completely unafraid. To me, Fearless is having fears, Fearless is having doubts. Lots of them. To me, Fearless is living in spite of those things that scare you to death. Fearless is falling madly in love again, even though you've been hurt before. Fearless is walking into your freshman year of high school at fifteen. Fearless is getting back up and fighting for what you want over and over again...even though every time you've tried before, you've lost. It's Fearless to have faith that someday things will change. Fearless is having the courage to say goodbye to someone who only hurts you, even though can't breathe without them. I think it's Fearless to fall for your best friend, even though he's in love with someone else. And when someone apologizes to you enough times for things they'll never stop doing, I think it's Fearless to stop believing them. It's Fearless to say 'You're NOT sorry'. I think loving someone despite what people think is Fearless. I think allowing yourself to cry on the bathroom floor is Fearless. Letting go is Fearless. Then, moving on and being alright...That's Fearless too. But no matter what love throws at you, you have to believe in it. You have to believe in love stories and prince charmings and happily ever after. That's why I write these songs. Because I think love is Fearless.»
Album Artwork


Critical Reception
In 2019, Rolling Stone wrote: “In retrospect, it’s pretty incredible that an institution as stodgy as the then-Recording Academy were able to see 20-year-old Taylor for who she already was: one of the most important singer-songwriters of her generation. Following her pop crossover, Fearless tends to get overlooked a little in terms of the great leap forward it represented at the time. But it brought country into the bedrooms of teen girls who might’ve rocked out to Avril Lavigne and Michelle Branch earlier in the decade, and showcased not only the pop chops that would get bigger but the storytelling instincts that would get better — in the same smash hit songs, no less.”
Commercial Performance
Five singles were released from Fearless. The lead single, “Love Story” was a crossover hit that became one of the best-selling singles of all time internationally and was once the best-selling country song of all time. The succeeding single, “White Horse“, also performed well in the US and earned Taylor her first two Grammys. “You Belong With Me” was an international success, becoming Taylor’s second best-selling single and her highest position on the US Billboard Hot 100 at the time. “Fifteen” and “Fearless” followed with both achieving a platinum certification from the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA).
Platinum Edition
Titled Fearless [Platinum Edition], the re-release was announced on September 10, 2009 with a release date of October 27, 2009. It was then pushed forward one day, to a release to October 26, 2009. Fearless [Platinum Edition] bore a new collector’s cover that altered the background color to black and included a CD and a DVD. The CD had an additional six songs placed prior to the original tracks from the album. The DVD comprised music videos (“Change“, “The Best Day“, “Love Story”, “White Horse“, and “You Belong With Me“), behind-the-scenes videos (for the latter three), over fifty images (photographed by Austin Swift, Taylor’s younger brother) and backstage footage from the first concert of the “Fearless Tour“, and “Thug Story” (a video with rapper T-Pain filmed exclusively for the 2009 CMT Music Awards).
Fearless (Taylor's Version)
Released | November 11, 2008 | |||
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Recorded | 2007–2008 | |||
Studio | Blackbird (Nashville) Fool On The Hill (Nashville) Love Shack (Nashville) Quad (Nashville) Sound Cottage (Nashville) Sound Emporium (Nashville) Starstruck (Nashville) The Sound Kitchen (Franklin) | |||
Genre | Country Pop | |||
Length | 53:41 | |||
Label | Big Machine Records | |||
Producers | Nathan Chapman Taylor Swift | |||
TAYLOR SWIFT CHRONOLOGY | ||||
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