• Billboard Pro
  • Subscribe
  • Charts Weekly
    • Hot 100
    • Billboard 200
    • Billboard Global 200
    • Billboard Global Excl. US
    • Artist 100
    • All Weekly Charts
    Year-End
    • Year-End Hot 100 Songs
    • Year-End Billboard 200 Albums
    • 2020 Year-End Boxscore
    • Google's Top Hummed Songs 2020
    • All Year-End Charts
    Decade-End
    • Decade-End Top Artists
    • Decade-End Top Artists - Interactive
    • Decade-End Hot 100 Songs
    • Decade-End Billboard 200 Albums
    • All Decade-End Charts
    Bandsintown X Billboard
    • Buzzing Livestream Artists
    • Rising Livestream Artists
    • Top Livestream Artists
  • News Genres
    • Pop
    • Hip-Hop/R&B
    • Dance
    • Country
    • Latin
    • Rock
    • K-Pop
    Topics
    • Year In Music 2019
    • Pride
    • Podcasts
    • International
    • All News
  • Video Video Series
    • Billboard News
    • Live Videos
    • Quizzed
    • How It Went Down
    • Emerging Artists: You Should Know
    • My Billboard Moment
    • All Videos
  • Photos
  • Pro Industry News
    • Legal and Management
    • Executive Turntable
    • Touring
    • Record Labels
    • Streaming
    • Tech
    • Publishing
    • Radio
    • All Industry News
    Pro Tools
    • Insights
    • Deep Dive
    • - Songs For Sale
    • - Music On TV: What Works Now
    • Close Calls
    • Chart Search
    • Boxscore
    • Billboard Bulletin
    • Artist index
    • Song Index
    Pro Charts
    • Pop Songs
    • Hot R&B / Hip-Hop Songs
    • Hot Country Songs
    • Songwriters & Producers
    • View All Pro Charts
  • Newsletters

Billboard Pro

  • Subscribe
  • Sign In

Follow Billboard

About Billboard

  • Terms of Use
  • Privacy Policy
  • AdChoices

© 2021 Billboard Media, LLC. All rights reserved. BILLBOARD is a registered trademark of Billboard IP Holdings, LLC

  • Charts Weekly
    • Hot 100
    • Billboard 200
    • Billboard Global 200
    • Billboard Global Excl. US
    • Artist 100
    • All Weekly Charts
    Year-End
    • Year-End Hot 100 Songs
    • Year-End Billboard 200 Albums
    • 2020 Year-End Boxscore
    • Google's Top Hummed Songs 2020
    • All Year-End Charts
    Decade-End
    • Decade-End Top Artists
    • Decade-End Top Artists - Interactive
    • Decade-End Hot 100 Songs
    • Decade-End Billboard 200 Albums
    • All Decade-End Charts
    Bandsintown X Billboard
    • Buzzing Livestream Artists
    • Rising Livestream Artists
    • Top Livestream Artists
  • News Genres
    • Pop
    • Hip-Hop/R&B
    • Dance
    • Country
    • Latin
    • Rock
    • K-Pop
    Topics
    • Year In Music 2019
    • Pride
    • Podcasts
    • International
    • All News
  • Video Video Series
    • Billboard News
    • Live Videos
    • Quizzed
    • How It Went Down
    • Emerging Artists: You Should Know
    • My Billboard Moment
    • All Videos
  • Photos
  • Pro Industry News
    • Legal and Management
    • Executive Turntable
    • Touring
    • Record Labels
    • Streaming
    • Tech
    • Publishing
    • Radio
    • All Industry News
    Pro Tools
    • Insights
    • Deep Dive
    • - Songs For Sale
    • - Music On TV: What Works Now
    • Close Calls
    • Chart Search
    • Boxscore
    • Billboard Bulletin
    • Artist index
    • Song Index
    Pro Charts
    • Pop Songs
    • Hot R&B / Hip-Hop Songs
    • Hot Country Songs
    • Songwriters & Producers
    • View All Pro Charts
  • Newsletters
    • Billboard Pro
    • Subscribe
Three Sixty
Top Artists
View All
Top Charts
Hot 100 Songs
Billboard 200
View All
Top Videos
Polo G Lands First Billboard Hot 100 No. 1 With 'Rapstar' | Billboard News
The ARMY Will Soon Be Able to Order BTS' Favorite McDonald's Order | Billboard News
View All
Top Articles
London Grammar Hurtling to U.K. Chart Crown With ‘Californian Soil’
Ariana Grande’s ‘Positions’ Posts Big Vinyl Sales, Jumps 79-2 on Billboard’s Top Album Sales Chart
View All
Watch Now
Photos

Taylor Swift's Career Timeline: From 'Tim McGraw' to '1989'

By Billboard Staff
11/4/2014
  • Copied to clipboard
Courtesy
1 / 43
Item 1 of 43

June 19, 2006

Taylor Swift's first single "Tim McGraw" is released by Big Machine Records. The track stays on the Billboard Hot 100 for 20 weeks, peaking at No. 40, and also reaches No. 6 on the Hot Country Songs chart.

By Billboard Staff
11/4/2014
  • Copied to clipboard
Artists Mentioned

Joe Jonas

John Mayer

Kanye West

Miley Cyrus

Taylor Swift

Courtesy
2 / 43
Item 2 of 43

Oct. 24, 2006

Taylor Swift releases her self-titled debut album on Big Machine Records. Taylor Swift debuts at No. 19 on the Billboard 200, holding a position on the Chart for 277 weeks and peaking at No. 5.

Courtesy
3 / 43
Item 3 of 43

Feb. 19, 2007

Swift releases "Teardrops On My Guitar," the second single off her debut album. "Teardrops" stays on the Billboard Hot 100 for 48 weeks, peaking at No. 13.

Courtesy
4 / 43
Item 4 of 43

Sept. 9, 2007

"Our Song," the third single from Swift's debut album, is released. The track spent a total of 36 weeks on the Billboard Hot 100, peaking at No. 16. It also becomes her first No. 1 on the Hot Country Songs chart, spending six weeks atop the list.

Scott Gries/Getty Images
5 / 43
Item 5 of 43

Oct. 14, 2007

Swift releases her first EP, Sounds of the Season: The Taylor Swift Holiday Collection, on Big Machine Records. The EP peaks at No. 20 on the Billboard 200 and at No. 1 on Top Holiday Albums.

Jeff Kravitz/FilmMagic
6 / 43
Item 6 of 43

July 2008-October 2008

Taylor Swift dates Joe Jonas. The Jonas Brother infamously breaks up with Swift over a 27-second phone call and reportedly inspires her songs "Last Kiss," "Forever and Always," and "Holy Ground."

Courtesy
7 / 43
Item 7 of 43

Sept. 12, 2008

"Love Story," the lead single off of Taylor Swift's second studio album Fearless, is released. The track spends 36 weeks on the Billboard Hot 100, peaking at No. 4, and hits No. 1 on Hot Country Songs.

Kevin Winter/Getty Images
8 / 43
Item 8 of 43

Nov. 10, 2008

Swift’s single “Love Story” is named song of the year at BMI’s 57th Country Awards, making it Swift’s second consecutive win in the category following her 2008 win for “Teardrops on My Guitar.”

Courtesy
9 / 43
Item 9 of 43

Nov. 11, 2008

Fearless, Swift's second studio album, is released by Big Machine Records. The album held the No. 1 position on the Billboard 200 for a total of 11 non-consecutive weeks, becoming the longest chart-topper by a female country artist.

Courtesy
10 / 43
Item 10 of 43

Jan. 10, 2009

Taylor Swift makes her debut appearance as a musical guest on Saturday Night Live. She returns on Nov. 7, 2009 as both host and musical guest.

ROBYN BECK/AFP/Getty Images
11 / 43
Item 11 of 43

Feb. 8, 2009

The singer performs her song "Fifteen" with Miley Cyrus at the 51st Grammy Awards. Swift goes on to win a total of seven Grammy Awards between 2009 and 2012.

Jeff Daly/FilmMagic
12 / 43
Item 12 of 43

Aug. 22, 2009

Taylor Swift's single "You Belong With Me" becomes her fourth No. 1 on the Hot Country Songs chart and her highest-charting hit, at the time, on the Billboard Hot 100, reaching No. 2.

Jean Baptiste Lacroix/WireImage
13 / 43
Item 13 of 43

August 2009-December 2009

Taylor Swift and Taylor Lautner date after meeting on the set of the romantic comedy Valentine's Day. Lautner is speculated to have inspired Swift's song "Back to December."

Brad Barket/MTV
14 / 43
Item 14 of 43

Sept. 13, 2009

Taylor Swift receives the award for best female video at the 2009 MTV Video Music Awards. During her acceptance speech, Kanye West infamously takes the stage to interrupt. "Yo, Taylor, I'm really happy for you, I'ma let you finish, but Beyonce had one of the best videos of all time!" he exclaims. "One of the best videos of all time!"

Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images for VEVO
15 / 43
Item 15 of 43

December 2009-February 2010

Taylor Swift has a brief romance with John Mayer, who's 13 years her senior. Mayer reportedly inspires Swift's song "Dear John" from the album Speak Now.

Courtesy
16 / 43
Item 16 of 43

Oct. 25, 2010

Taylor Swift's third studio album Speak Now is released on Big Machine Records. The album peaked at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 for 11 non-consecutive weeks, becoming the best-selling album of 2009 in the U.S., according to Nielsen SoundScan.

Kevork Djansezian/Getty Images
17 / 43
Item 17 of 43

Nov. 20, 2011

The singer wins artist of the year at the American Music Awards.

Courtesy
18 / 43
Item 18 of 43

February 2012

The singer graces the cover of fashion bible Vogue.

WENN.com
19 / 43
Item 19 of 43

Conor Kennedy (July 2012-October 2012)

Then-22-year-old Swift begins dating 18-year-old Conor Kennedy. Kennedy is believed by some to have inspire Swift's song "Begin Again."

Courtesy
20 / 43
Item 20 of 43

Aug. 13, 2012

Taylor Swift releases "We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together," the lead single off of her fourth studio album, Red. The single becomes the first in Swift's career to peak at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100.

Courtesy
21 / 43
Item 21 of 43

Oct. 22, 2012

The singer's fourth studio album, Red is released on Big Machine Records. The album sold 1.21 million copies in its first week in the U.S. and debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 chart, making it the second-highest debut for a female artist (after Britney Spears' Oops!...I Did It Again).

Kevin Winter/WireImage
22 / 43
Item 22 of 43

December 2012-January 2013

Taylor Swift dates One Direction's Harry Styles. While opening the 2013 Grammy Awards with her single "We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together," Swift takes a jab at Styles by using a fake British accent during the spoken portion of the song.

Kevin Winter/Getty Images
23 / 43
Item 23 of 43

taylor-swift-ama-2013-600

Taylor Swift wins artist of the year for the third time at the American Music Awards, making her the all-time winner in the category.

TAS/Getty Images for TAS
24 / 43
Item 24 of 43

March 13, 2013

The Red Tour starts in Omaha, Neb. During a stop on the tour in Sydney, Australia, Swift sells out the Allianz Stadium (with an at-capacity crowd of 40,900 fans), making her the first female artist in history to do so since it opened in 1988. She was also the first female artist since Madonna to undertake a stadium tour Down Under.

Theo Wargo/WireImage
25 / 43
Item 25 of 43

Taylor Swift & Daft Punk

"I Knew You Were Trouble" wins best female video at the 2013 MTV Video Music Awards.

Courtesy
26 / 43
Item 26 of 43

Aug. 18, 2014

Swift releases the single "Shake It Off," the first single off of her fifth studio album 1989.

Kevin Winter/Getty Images
27 / 43
Item 27 of 43

Aug. 27, 2014

Days after performing it on the MTV VMAs (pictured), "Shake It Off" becomes Swift's second Billboard Hot 100 No. 1, and just the 22nd title to debut at No. 1 in the chart's five-decade history.

28 / 43
Item 28 of 43

Taylor Swift, '1989' (2014)

Taylor Swift's 1989 debuts at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 albums chart with the largest sales week for an album since 2002. 1989 sold 1.287 million copies in the week ending Nov. 2, according to Nielsen SoundScan. 1989 is Swift’s fifth studio album and was released Oct. 27 through Big Machine Records.

29 / 43
Item 29 of 43

Nov. 29, 2014

“Blank Space” hits No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100, giving the 1989 album its second chart-topper. It would spend a total of seven weeks at No. 1.

30 / 43
Item 30 of 43

June 6, 2015

The bow of Swift's epic star-studded video for “Bad Blood” (which premiered on the Billboard Music Awards) helps lift the song to No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100.

31 / 43
Item 31 of 43

Nov. 7, 2015

The 1989 album celebrates a full first year in the top 10 of the Billboard 200 chart, making it just the fifth album to spend its first 52 weeks of release in the top 10.

Courtesy of VEVO
32 / 43
Item 32 of 43

Nov. 7, 2015

“Wildest Dreams” climbs to No. 5 on the Billboard Hot 100, giving the 1989 album its fifth top 10 single.

Courtesy of VEVO
33 / 43
Item 33 of 43

Dec. 5, 2015

Swift tops Billboard's Dance/Mix Show Airplay chart for the first time, with "Wildest Dreams." The song rules the tally thanks in large part to an officially commissioned remix by DJ R3hab.

Jason LaVeris/FilmMagic
34 / 43
Item 34 of 43

Feb. 15, 2016

Swift takes home three 2015 Grammy Awards, for best music video ("Bad Blood"), best pop vocal album (1989) and album of the year (1989). She's the first woman to win the album of the year award twice for their own album. She previously won the award for Fearless.

Courtesy Photo
35 / 43
Item 35 of 43

Feb. 20, 2016

"Out of the Woods" becomes the sixth top 20-charting single from 1989 on the Pop Songs airplay chart. It peaks at No. 12.

Courtesy Photo
36 / 43
Item 36 of 43

April 16, 2016

1989 spins off a seventh top 20-charting hit on the Pop Songs chart with "New Romantics," as the song peaks at No. 18.

Jun Sato/Getty Images for TS
37 / 43
Item 37 of 43

May 22, 2016

Swift wins her 21st career Billboard Music Award, for top touring artist. Through 2016, she has earned 21 Billboard Music Awards -- the most of any artist.

Sarah Barlow
38 / 43
Item 38 of 43

July 1, 2016

The entertainer celebrates the 10th anniversary of her debut on Billboard's charts: "Tim McGraw" debuted on the July 1, 2006-dated Hot Country Songs chart at No. 60.

Courtesy Photo
39 / 43
Item 39 of 43

Dec. 31, 2016

Swift scores her 20th top 10 Billboard Hot 100 hit, as "I Don't Wanna Live Forever (Fifty Shades Darker)," with Zayn, debuts at No. 6; it goes on to peak at No. 2. She's the sixth solo woman in the Hot 100's history to tally at least 20 top 10s, following Madonna, Rihanna, Mariah Carey, Janet Jackson and Whitney Houston.

Courtesy Photo
40 / 43
Item 40 of 43

Sept. 16, 2017

"Look What You Made Me Do," the lead single from Swift's album Reputation, vaults 77-1 on the Billboard Hot 100 (following its first full week of data tracking), becoming her fifth No. 1 on the list.

Courtesy Photo
41 / 43
Item 41 of 43

Dec. 2, 2017

Swift's Reputation launches as her fifth No. 1 album on the Billboard 200. Starting with 1.2 million sold in its first week, the sum marks her fourth million-selling week for an album, making her the first artist in Nielsen Music history to achieve four million-selling frames.

Isabel Infantes/PA Images via Getty Images
42 / 43
Item 42 of 43

Dec. 9, 2017

Having gone all-out pop in 2014 on her album 1989, after breaking through as a country superstar, Swift makes her first visit to the Hot Country Songs chart in nearly four years, as ballad "New Year's Day," from her album Reputation, debuts at No. 40. Swift totaled 19 top 10s, including seven No. 1s, on Hot Country Songs from her chart arrival in 2006 through 2013.
 

For the full list of Swift's 40 biggest Billboard chart hits, click here.

Courtesy Photo
43 / 43
Item 43 of 43

March 24, 2018

After announcing that "Delicate" would be the sixth single from Reputation, the track debuts on the Billboard Hot 100 chart (dated March 24) and reaches No. 46 a month later. The song becomes her 76th entry on the chart, which passes Ray Charles for 10th-most entries in the Hot 100's 60-year history. 

By Billboard Staff
11/5/2014
  • Copied to clipboard

Watch Now

Videos

J Balvin and Valentina Ferrer Expecting Their First Baby | Billboard News

4 days ago

Follow Billboard

The Daily

A daily briefing on what matters in the music industry

  • Subscribe
  • Billboard Events
  • Shop
  • Contact Us
  • Careers
  • FAQ
  • Accessibility Statement
  • Sitemap
  • Media Kit
  • Terms of Use
  • Privacy Policy
  • AdChoices
  • California Privacy Rights

© 2021 Billboard Media, LLC. All rights reserved. BILLBOARD is a registered trademark of Billboard IP Holdings, LLC