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How Taylor Swift's music videos have evolved over the past 10 years
"Tim McGraw" — 2006. Swift was just 16 when she released her debut single and accompanying music video. Her curly hair and acoustic guitar were staples in her early videos.
Entertainment1 min read"Teardrops On My Guitar" — 2007. Swift's second single was her best-charting song from her debut album. The video jumps between Swift pining over a crush at school and at home, where she's clutching a guitar in bed. The video earned her first MTV Video Music Award nomination.
"Our Song" — 2007. The video for "Our Song" was the first video where Swift straightened her then iconic curls, albeit briefly.
"Picture to Burn" — 2008. Swift's real friend Abigail joined in the fiery video about ransacking an ex-boyfriend's house.
"I'm Only Me When I'm With You" — 2008. The song was an addition to the reissue of her debut album, and the video was made up of home videos from Swift.
"Change" — 2008. This song served as one of NBC's themes for the 2008 Summer Olympics, with proceeds from the song's sales going to the US Olympic team.
"Love Story" — 2008. The first single off of her second album, "Love Story" was Swift's first video set in a past time period.
"The Best Day" — 2008/2009. Swift wrote the song while on the road. She made a music video for it from a compilation of home videos and gave it to her mother as a Christmas present. Swift included the song on her second album.
"White Horse" — 2009. "Laguna Beach's" Stephen Colletti played Swift's lying boyfriend in the video for "White Horse." The song won two Grammy Awards, but neither were for the video itself.
"You Belong With Me" — 2009. Swift plays both the antagonist and the protagonist pining for the same guy in the music video. She became the first country singer to win an MTV Video Music Award for this video, but was infamously interrupted onstage by Kanye West during her acceptance speech.
"Fifteen" — 2009. "Fifteen" was inspired by Abigail's heartbreak in high school, and she is featured in the music video alongside Swift.
"Fearless" — 2010. Footage from the "Fearless" tour was used to compose the video for the titular song.
"Mine" — 2010. The video for "Mine" imagines a relationship from the first meeting through marriage and a family.
"Back to December" — 2011. Swift said the song is the first time she apologized in a song, and the video shows Swift writing an apology to an ex-boyfriend.
"Mean" — 2011. Swift wrote the song as a response to critics, and the video tells several stories of people dealing with bullies.
"The Story of Us" — 2011. The video shows the awkwardness of running into an ex in a public space, which was based on an experience Swift had running into an ex at an awards show.
"Sparks Fly" — 2011. The video for "Sparks Fly" was composed from clips of Swift during her "Speak Now" tour.
"Ours" — 2011. Much of the video follows Swift as she works in an office, but the end finds the singer at an airport greeting her military boyfriend.
"Safe & Sound" — 2012. Swift wrote "Safe and Sound" with T-Bone Burnett and Joy Williams and John Paul White of the Civil Wars for "The Hunger Games" soundtrack. The video features both Swift and the Civil Wars, as well as references to the movie. The song was nominated for a Golden Globe.
"We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together" — 2012. This song was Swift's first major jump into a purely pop song. The video was filmed in one continuous shot and takes the singer through quirky settings as her band is dressed in animal costumes.
"Begin Again" — 2012. Swift filmed this video in Paris, and it shows the singer falling in love again after a failed relationship.
"I knew You Were Trouble" — 2012. Swift donned pink tips and short hair for this video of her falling for a bad boy. It starts with her speaking over a video montage.
22" — 2013. Swift and some of her real friends danced around and had fun in the video for "22.
"Everything Has Changed" ft. Ed Sheeran — 2013. The video features two young kids who look like a young Swift and Sheeran who meet on a bus. Turns out the two singers play the individual kid's respective parents.
Red" — 2013. This is yet another tour video, this time for "Red.
"The Last Time" ft. Gary Lightbody — 2013. This video features footage from the first time Swift and Gary Lightbody (of Snow Patrol) sang onstage together during the "Red" tour.
"Shake It Off" — 2014. Swift showed off different kinds of dance moves for the first video from her all-pop album, "1989." It's the sixth-most viewed video on YouTube.
"Blank Space" — 2014. Swift made fun of the jokes made about all of her exes by acting like a crazed girlfriend in the video for "Blank Space." It's the fourth-most watched video on YouTube.
"Style" — 2015. This video focuses on imagery with projections and filters over the camera lenses.
"Bad Blood" ft. Kendrick Lamar — 2015. The video premiered during the Billboard Music Awards and featured cameos from a number of celebrities, including Selena Gomez, Karlie Kloss, and Jessica Alba. The elaborate video looks and feels like an action movie. She won her first Grammy for best music video.
Wildest Dreams" — 2015. Swift traveled to Africa to film the music video that was inspired by films from the '50s. The video did receive criticism for romanticizing colonialism and "present[ing] a glamorous version of the white colonial fantasy of Africa.
Source: NPR
"Out of the Woods" — 2015. This stunning video features Swift running through enchanted woods, as well as dealing in other elements. It premiered New Year's Eve.
"New Romantics" — 2016. Her most recent video is another tour compilation, this time from her "1989" tour.
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