11 Lesser-Known Facts About Taylor Swift To Test How Much Of A Diehard Swiftie You Really Are

Taylor Swift Facts

With more Taylor Swift concert details being released, Singaporean fans are anxiously awaiting the ticket sales this week ― you could say “The Great War” is coming. In the meantime, here’s a fact check to see whether you’re a true blue Swiftie. 

Below, we compiled a list of lesser–known facts that you might not know about the pop singer even if you are a hardcore Swiftie. 

1. Had small cameos in CSI and New Girl

Source, source

While some of us know that Taylor showed off her acting chops in movies such as Valentine’s Day and The Giver, others might not know that she kickstarted her acting career with the famous crime show, CSI: Crime Scene Investigation. 

Taylor portrayed a rebellious teenager in Season 9, where she donned an auburn wig and lip piercings for the role ― NGL, it was giving a Reputation and Red era crossover. According to Vulture, the singer was toying with the “good girl and angry ex” personas for the part.

Speaking of the “good girl” persona, she also played a loving ex-girlfriend on New Girl’s Season 2 finale. Taylor declared her love for both shows before the roles, which made her excited to be onboard for the projects.

2. Her mom wanted her to be a horseback rider

Source

Becoming a singer had always been Taylor’s dream but her mom had other plans for her. She initially wanted young Taylor to become a professional horseback rider. 

The singer grew up around horses and practiced horseback riding when she was younger. However, a 12-year-old Taylor worked up the courage to tell her mom that she wanted to pursue music over horseback riding. We never thought in our wildest dreams that one of the most accomplished artists could have almost become an equestrian.

3. Taylor Swift’s mom used to live in Singapore

Source, source

Singaporean fans might not know that Taylor’s mum, Andrea Swift, holds our country in a very special place in her heart. Andrea spent the first 10 years of her life in Singapore as her father was an oil rig engineer who worked in Southeast Asia and her mother was a professional opera singer.

During her 2015 Red Tour concert in Singapore, the artist mentioned that bringing her mother back to her childhood place brought back a lot of memories and nostalgia for the 65-year-old. 

BTW the songs, “marjorie” from the Evermore album and “epiphany” from the Folklore album, pays tribute to Taylor’s grandparents. The singer also credited her late grandmother in the Evermore album notes for her background vocals ― talent does run in the family. 

4. “Blank Space” took the least time to write, while “All Too Well” took her the longest

Source, source

As an accomplished songwriter who writes from the heart, it’s no secret that some songs took a few minutes for Taylor to pen down whereas other tracks took months.

According to 2016 Vogue’s 73 Questions With Taylor Swift, “Blank Space” took the least amount of time to write whereas “All Too Well” took the longest. For the 1989 hit, the singer said that it was easy as she penned down a lot of the lines before the recording session. 

However, the Red track took the longest as she mentioned it was a very emotional song, so much so that she put it down for months on end. Looks like the “love affair” with a certain actor did maim her all too well. 

5. The Netflix film “Someone Great” inspired one of her songs in the “Lover” album

Source, source

Some Swifties might not have known that Taylor Swift wrote one of her most romantic songs based on a well-loved Netflix movie “Someone Great”, a modern rom–com which features elements of love, loss and friendship. 

According to Billboard, the singer mentioned that “Death By Thousand Cuts” from her Lover album was inspired by the film. She even quoted that it was “the most meta thing that’s ever happened to me.” 

If you are wondering why the movie is so Taylor-coded, “Someone Great” was first inspired by Taylor’s 1989 track, “Clean ”― call it a super Swift-ception. Plus, she even wrote the track without knowing the film was inspired by her. 

6. Some songs in her debut album were for her then-high school sweetheart

Source

Writing a song for your high school sweetheart sounds like a scene from a romance movie and for 17-year-old Taylor, she did just that. 

The songstress wrote the eleventh track on her debut album, “Our Song”, with her high school sweetheart in mind. BTW, it’s the same guy that “Tim McGraw” was written about ― and even though they didn’t work out, it’s still a pretty sweet love story.

She went on to perform the song for her talent show which gained her a lot of compliments. It was then that Taylor knew that the special song had potential to be a single. 

Also read:

This Taylor Swift-Inspired Jewellery Collection Has “Eras Tour” Rings So You Can Be Bejeweled For The Concert

7. She once modeled for Abercrombie & Fitch

Source

Before becoming the famous artist that we know and love, Taylor once modeled for Abercrombie & Fitch back in 2003 for their Rising Stars campaign. Modeling for the lifestyle clothing brand seems like a rite of passage for most stars today. 

With her pose of looking forlornly while holding her iconic guitar, it’s almost like she’s reenacting her song “Teardrops On My Guitar”. 

8. In 2014, Taylor Swift accidentally released 8 seconds of white noise

Source

Fans were super puzzled back in 2014 when a mysterious release named Track 3 was dropped before the release of Taylor’s album 1989. Although it was only 8 seconds of static, the “song” quickly became number one in Canada on iTunes before it was removed.

As much as we love unexpected tracks from Miss Taytay, this was clearly an accident, but is also proved that she could release anything and it would still top the charts.

9. She trademarked the phrase “This Sick Beat” back in 2015 

Source

It seems like brands can’t “Shake It Off” with Taylor’s trademark for certain phrases from her 2014 album. According to Vox, the star trademarked “public appearances” to “clothing” under “This Sick Beat” from the 1989 song “Shake It Off”. 

She also trademarked other phrases from her pop album such as “Nice To Meet You, Where You Been” and “Party Like It’s 1989”. If you’re thinking of purchasing unofficial merch with these phrases, best hope that karma doesn’t track you down. 

10. She donated the proceeds she earned from the “Wildest Dreams” video to wild animals

Source

We love a singer who has a kind heart and it’s no secret Taylor does her part by donating and advocating for movements. When the singer released her “Wildest Dreams” music video which featured wild animals, she donated all of her proceeds to African Parks Foundation of America. 

The organisation is all about eradication of poaching, nature conservation, community engagement and the development of sustainable tourism. We have no choice but to stan such a kind and generous soul.

11. The person who taught her how to play a guitar is a computer repairman

Source

Every star has their own humble beginnings and for Taylor, it all started with Ronnie Cremer who taught her how to play the guitar. While fixing some computers at her house, he noticed young Taylor had a guitar lying in a corner and offered to teach her some chords ― the rest was history.

However as the artist rose to fame, she had to take action against people who were using her name to generate income for themselves. 

In 2015, Taylor swiftly took action against Ronnie and demanded him to take her name down on his domain website, ITaughtTaylorSwift.com, as it violated her trademark. The ex-teacher said that he felt “bullied” by her team and Taylor’s dad unfriended him on Facebook ― talk about bad blood. 

These Lesser–Known Taylor Swift Facts Show Why We Should Stan The Singer 

Flex to your friends by showing off how much you know about Taylor Swift with these lesser known facts ― after all, she is the moment and an icon. Plus, you can check out our ranking of Taylor Swift eras to hype you up for the 2024 concert as well. 

Cover: Source, source, source
This article was first published on 3 July 2023 and last updated on 5 March 2024. 

Also read:

This SG Shop Has Unofficial Taylor Swift Merch Like Keychains & Tote Bags So You Can Rep Your Fave Era