Taylor Swift, for example, did not let this strange and sad year go to waste. Without any warning each time, she released and recorded two great albums, Folklore and Ever. (At the same time, she calmly embarked on the task of re-recording her entire initial catalog, after the rights to the original recordings fell into the hands of an investment fund, against her will.) See how ours Rolling Stone Music Now podcast covered a very Taylor Swift-y year – along with some previous dives into the Swift tradition.
When Swift suddenly fell Folklore, we were there, with Brittany Spanos (who also interviewed Swift about the making of Red for our 500 Greatest Albums podcast) and Rob Sheffield joining presenter Brian Hiatt for a track-by-track review.
The same team returned this month to face the mysteries and glories of Ever.
When the pandemic closed the United States for the first time, Swift weighed in on the music that comforted her (as did Stevie Nicks, Sheryl Crow, Matt Berninger and others)
In 2019, we gave Lover treatment track by track.
And in 2017, we did the same for Reputation.
Download and subscribe to our weekly podcast, Rolling Stone Music Now, hosted by Brian Hiatt, on iTunes or Spotify (or wherever you get your podcasts), and check three years of episodes in the archive, including in-depth career interviews with Bruce Springsteen, Halsey, Neil Young, Phoebe Bridgers, the National, Dua Lipa, Alicia Keys, Questlove, Julian Casablancas, Sheryl Crow, Johnny Marr, Scott Weiland, Liam Gallagher, Alice Cooper, Fleetwood Mac, Elvis Costello, Donald Fagen, Phil Collins, Justin Townes Earle, Stephen Malkmus, Sebastian Bach, Tom Petty, Eddie Van Halen, Kelly Clarkson, Pete Townshend, Bob Seger, the Zombies, Gary Clark Jr. and many more – in addition to dozens of genre episodes – promoting discussions, debates and explainers with Rolling Stone critics and reporters. Tune in every Friday at 1 pm to hear the broadcast of Rolling Stone Music Now on SiriusXM Volume, channel 106.