Taylor goes for a straight edge look.

Taylor performing at the CMA Awards.

Lest we forget, she’s also the top selling digital artist of all time. Her debut album “Taylor Swift” has remained in the Billboard Top 100 for 168 weeks, the longest ever. In total, Taylor has been nominated for 78 different awards and won 48 of them.

I’ll assume that gives you enough to know that Taylor Swift as a singer is more than successful. In fact, even in the moments of her career success, her character shines through. In September, Taylor won an upset at the Video Music Awards by winning Best Female Video. Kanye West came on stage during her acceptance speech and said Taylor didn’t deserve the award. While many artists vehemently ripped Kanye apart for his actions, Taylor responded with dignity. In the moment, she tearfully walked offstage and a few minutes later gave her performance. A few days later, Taylor appeared on The View and was naturally asked about the situation. Taylor responded, “Well, I think my overall thought process was something like, ‘Wow, I can’t believe I won, this is awesome, don’t trip and fall, I’m gonna get to thank the fans, this is so cool. Oh, Kanye West is here. Cool haircut. What are you doing there?’ And then, ‘Ouch.’ And then, ‘I guess I’m not gonna get to thank the fans.’” She later stated that Kanye had not yet apologized to her. It was that grace about the situation and later unwillingness to speak poorly of Kanye that earned her many more fans outside the realm of country music.

Beyonce graciously allowed Taylor to use her acceptance speech time to give her own.

Taylor prefers to use her money to help others, in particular teen issues and the Red Cross. She’s been known to donate to the Red Cross on multiple occasions particularly after natural disasters. Its her work with teen causes that have seen the most help though. Taylor partnered with Tennessee Governor Phil Bredesen to protect children from online predators. “Chatting with friends and surfing the internet is cool. But it’s important to stay safe. Be smart about keeping your identity private online,” stated Taylor. As a teenager who used online resources to build her massive fanbase, Taylor knows what she’s talking about. She also actively supports @15, an opportunity through Best Buy that allows teens to choose how and where the company donates to charity.

Taylor enjoying an interview.

As a role model, Taylor is more than aware of her position of inspiration in the lives of young women. She holds that position in high esteem, saying “I’ve never been fascinated by the party lifestyle. Sometimes people look at me like, You’re 19 and don’t want to rebel? For me, rebelling is done with words: I love to write honest songs that name real people, then get up onstage and live out those emotions in front of 15,000 people. Penciling in a night to get wasted is not something I want to do.” It’s that attitude and acknowledgement that living life responsibly that has gained Taylor many of her fans. To her, celebrity comes with responsibility rather than a free ticket to party.

Taylor with a fan.

Many other celebrities her age seem to be caught up in enjoying the good life. Such partying has caused other young stars to not only be labeled terrible influences but those who continue in such antics are losing career opportunities as well. The partying and rebelliousness causes a lack of trust, something Taylor isn’t willing to give up. “When you lose someone’s trust, its lost, and there are a lot of people out there who are counting on me right now. Rebellion is what you make of it. When you’ve been on a tour bus for two months straight and then you get in your car and drive wherever you want, that can feel rebellious.”

Taylor and her mother.

That attitude comes from solid upbringing by her parents and the instilling of good values. “I think it all comes down to who you surround yourself with and how strong your morals are,” says Swift. “Before I make a decision, I stop and think about the 10-year-old girl I saw last night at my concert in the front row. I think about her mom. I think about how they bought my CD, thinking that I’m a good role model. Then I think about how they would feel if I did something to let them down. I can’t imagine a greater pain than letting one of those mothers down. I honestly can’t.” Perhaps a lot of this comes from the fact that Taylor values her own mother’s opinion so strongly. Her mother spends a fair amount of time touring with her and advising Taylor in different areas. Having a strong role model in her own life has equipped Taylor to be an excellent role model as well.

The other aspect that fans love about Taylor is her unflinching honesty. “I don’t think honesty is ever something you should regret. I figure if I’m going to cover things up and try to hide the way I feel and try to be perfect all the time, people are going to see through that. And also, if you’re trying to change yourself all the time to adapt to what you think you should be, you’re going to run out of the things to be after a while.” Taylor knows that vulnerability and honesty in her lyrics are what have endeared fans to her. The honesty has also allowed her to write hit songs that critics and listeners rave over. These days, many artists are creating personas, as though they want to be one person on stage and another person at home. But to Taylor “it’s much better to be real than to be protected all the time. Everybody’s vulnerable; it’s just how much you choose to show it.”