9781422286630

Hendersonville High School. RCA suggested she write with veteran songsmiths like Troy Verges, Brett Beavers, Brett James, Mac McAnally, and the Warren Brothers. These collaborations were short-lived, but she would form a lasting relationship with another writer, Liz Rose. Nearly 30 years Taylor’s senior, Rose had come to songwriting relatively late in life. Nevertheless, their after-school songwriting sessions were fruitful. “I love writing with Liz,” said Taylor, who explained that she was the instigator of the songs’ ideas. “When we write, I usually come in with a melody and some lyric content, and then we’ll work on creating the rest of the song. She’s a really good song editor.” A parting of the ways with RCA came at the end of the development deal after a disagreement as to Taylor’s future direction. The company wanted her to wait until she was 18 and then record an album of other people’s songs, while Taylor wanted to record her own material immediately. Manager Dymtrow was let go because Taylor felt that she wasn’t making enough progress. In the meantime, she signed a publishing deal with Sony/ATV Tree. Arthur Buenahora, the Sony executive who signed Swift said, “The songs were great, but it was her, really. She was a star. She lit up the room.” He added, “I liked her attitude. She was very easy to root for.” Soon Taylor would find a record company that felt the same way and her career would truly be under way.

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ABOVE: Taylor pictured with Liz Rose – one of her co-writers.