Taylor Swift’s Label Boss Returns Fire Against Critics
Feb 03, 2010 - By Jeffrey Hyatt
One of the big storylines coming out of Sunday night’s 52nd Grammy Awards was Taylor Swift’s underwhelming duet with Stevie Nicks on Swift’s “Today Was a Fairytale” and “You Belong with Me” sandwiching the Fleetwood Mac hit, “Rhiannon.” The wave of criticism following Swift’s mediocre performance quickly morphed into an intense backlash against the singer; her winning Album of the Year definitely irked plenty of music fans.
All this negativity directed at the young singer has Scott Borchetta, the head of Swift’s record label, really pissed off. Check below to read his rather intense comments regarding the Grammy incident and subsequent backlash, courtesy of the Tennessean.
“The biggest message is (the critics) are not getting it,” Borchetta said. “Because the facts say she is the undisputed best communicator that we’ve got. When she says something, when she sings something, when she feels something, it affects more people than anybody else.”
Borchetta says Swift might not be the best technical singer, but adds, “she’s probably the best emotional singer because everybody else who gets up there and is technically perfect, people don’t seem to want more of it.”
That’s debatable. People love to see their favorite artists go off script, if you will, during a performance, but even when they’re at their emotional best, the music still needs to sound good. Right?
“Everybody is not perfect on any given day. If you pick any of those artists that performed (on the Grammy Awards) I’m sure you can go online and find something where you go, ‘ew.’ Maybe in that moment we didn’t have the best night. But in the same breath, maybe we did. And nobody is arguing with the awards.”
Interestingly, the issue of whether or not Swift had an off night Sunday (she did) has been quickly replaced by a much broader debate over the singer’s talent and too-fast-a-jump to stardom. Obviously not everyone is going to like Swift regardless if she sounds great or awful, but Sunday’s shoddy performance – contrasted with her four, big Grammy wins – opened the door nice and wide for critics to pounce.
Borchetta thinks those critics just don’t get it.
“This is what always happens and is the unfortunate part of the American dream, that we build these people up to watch the critics tear them down. Well, you better have more than what you’ve got now if you think you’re going to get in the ring and fight with us. So, get in the ring.”
That sounds like the gauntlet being thrown down. Either this incident is forgotten by the weekend, or critics (that would be professionals and music fans with a Blog to populate) continue to stir up the Taylor Swift backlash.
Wednesday, February 3, 2010 9:17PM
Anyone can become a great "emotional" singer though. Half of the time, those emotions are tone deaf. Do emotional and technical singing have the same standards for critics to base their opinions on? Definitely not. I think Borchetta is mixing up which type is more important than the other.
Thursday, February 4, 2010 1:24AM
Very well said, Guest poster #1. Pairing Taylor Swift with Stevie Nicks' legendary voice only accentuated Taylor's mediocre vocal ability. I read somewhere that her appeal is purely content and lifestyle, not at all musicality. That same source called her a living American Girl doll. I think that's quite true, for her target market.
Her label inferring that she may have had an off night and that this backlash is just American society '…building someone up to tear them down…' is simply denial of some very legitimate reactions to a horrible performance. It is what it is, and before you invite people to get in the ring you'd better be sure your fighter can take a punch.
Thursday, February 4, 2010 1:31AM
Taylor Swift had no business being on stage with Stevie PERIOD! Just because Kanye stormed the VMA stage does not mean we have to overcompensate and give Taylor every award after that. She is mediocre and her shtick is boring.
Thursday, February 4, 2010 1:32AM
Taylor Swift had no business being on stage with Stevie PERIOD! Just because Kanye stormed the VMA stage does not mean we have to overcompensate and give Taylor every award after that. She is mediocre and her shtick is boring.
Thursday, February 4, 2010 1:42AM
I am a professional music critic who has interviewed Taylor Swift and covered her from the start. She is a bright young woman and as a songwriter she is connecting with a vast audience.
That said, Borchetta's shortsighted response here is distressing and obnoxious and does more of a disservice to Swift than he realizes. Instead of blaming the messengers he should hire Swift a vocal coach FAST who can teach her how to sing in tune.
There's a world of difference between singing "emotional" and singing off-key. Off-key is never acceptable and Swift is ALWAYS off-key.
Instead of improving, she is getting worse and the more she is rewarded with sales and Grammys and the more she is defended by her boss the faster her career will come to a premature end.
This would be a shame.
But Mr. Borchetta, it's FAR from just us paid cynical music critics who are complaining about Swift's horrible singing. The masses are and when you become the youngest artist ever to win Album of the Year and the first country woman to do so, you'd better live up to those honors, and Taylor isn't CLOSE to worthy of this distinction.
In fact, your comments and her singing is insulting to anyone who appreciates music.
Thursday, February 4, 2010 1:43AM
Frankly, I'm surprised that someone as bright as Swift isn't aware of what people are saying and isn't willing to do something about it. But I guess so long as making money and counting numbers is all that matters in Nashville, if it ain't broke, don't fix it.
Pathetic.
Thursday, February 4, 2010 1:54AM
I agree Taylor Swift is a terrible singer….One making the kind of money she makes, and getting the awards….What a farce…
Thursday, February 4, 2010 4:52AM
what garbage taylor writes and sings what she feels at this stage of her life my god people she 20 give her a break. We do live in a society today that we bulid people up and then we tear down for our amusenemt. And if folks this is only her second album and i hate to tell you this but people in any field they do once in a while youre going to have a bad night once in awhile and no singer is going to be perfect. IM not a tween girl im a 20 year old male and i like taylor swift. to the nitpickers you just dont get her . hey if you dont like taylor dont freakin watch her or listen her she has one bad night and you want trash her lets be ownest beyonce looked like she was havin seizure pink was naked but all i heard oh was soulful song gaga was probaly lipsynch you never know but hey lets trash taylor she had all sucess this year sad sad sad sad.
Thursday, February 4, 2010 10:39AM
Why did they pair her with Stevie Nicks anyway? Isn't Nicks her own genre—gothic-vampire, country-tinged, classic rock mysticism? I mean she doesn't sound like anyone and she made her fortune by being unique and original, not from having a great voice. What would make them think that her deep, surrealistic, vibrato voice would sound good with Taylor's pretty baby voice? It's clear to me after watching that performance on youtube that both women were off. Nicks couldn't harmonize with Swift and Taylor could not sing Nicks song. Taylor also started the performance off-key. It was oil and water. But the saddest thing of all is it did not seem liked they practiced the performance. The whole thing seemed thrown together, like they were just doing it for fun. Someone needs to sit Taylor down and tell her that these award show performance need to be perfected before she goes out on stage. What were they thinking?
Thursday, February 4, 2010 4:28PM
I agree with her record label. And next week we will see that the general public as well as the true grammy fans also agree with him when she sees one of the biggest sales increases post grammy awards. I don't know why people who likely aren't a fan anyway want to turn this girl into something she's not. That is her voice, that's the way she sounds. If you don't like it, don't buy it. the entire music industry has been agreeing all of 2009 that she has been the best then they topped it on in 2010 honoring her with the biggest music award of all AOTY. So why should she change a perfect formula? Her concerts are selling out and as she ages she will write more mature music but her voice is her voice. You don't like it find someone you do like. Don't change a thing Taylor and the record boss essentially told you haters to kiss their asses. LOL
Friday, February 5, 2010 7:50PM
Mr. Borchetta explained it well. He is right. I am on his side. Everybody on the other side doesen't get it.
Friday, February 5, 2010 5:05PM
Kevin, of course Stevie couldn’t harmonize with her, Taylor was off key. Nicks knows how to do backup and harmony (2 and 3 part harmony). Listen to Buckingham Nicks or any Fleetwood Mac album after 1975. Beautiful harmonies. If it wasn’t for software called AutoTune poor Taylor would have no career. It really is all about packaging now.
Saturday, February 6, 2010 3:36PM
Ok since you seem to think you have "authority" because you're a twenty year old male, as a nineteen year old FEmale I'm going to jump in and say that you are wrong. I'm not sure what about Taylor Swift appeals to you, but if you're not tone deaf and have a mental capacity greater than a 12 year old it can't be her musicianship…First, every live performance of hers that I've seen (no more than a handful, bc oh God my ears!) has been painful and off pitch. Second, her age is no excuse for the "garbage" with which she assaults the world. Swift's a couple of months older than me and if she still thinks life is about being "a damsel in distress" or "wearing short skirts in the bleachers" (I can't even believe these are actual lyrics!), then she should give up now. I'm not saying that she should write about tax returns and college loans, but there is more to life than pining after some guy that dumped you (as was his right) 10 years ago. The second point is rather irrelavent though because the first point seems insurmountable for her: she is a TERRIBLE singer.
Saturday, February 6, 2010 3:42PM
Oh please, Adolf Hitler got support for the masses lol, I'm not saying that Swifts going to go all genocidal on us (although I did recently see her having a good old time with a friend/fan wearing a swastika tee-shirt, yikes!) but the "people" will accept anything mainstream and popular and atrocious singing aside, Swift are those things. By that same token the amount of money she's made and even those shiny trophies don't mean anything. It's all a popularity contest, just because her image is well-liked doesn't mean I have to ignore my ears cries for help whenever I hear her without the studio touch ups. LOL