I recently fell in love with Taylor Swift after she released her tenth studio album, Midnights. Since then, I’ve immersed myself in her music, and I’m not complaining. I spend much of my free time watching videos of people ranking their favorite bridges, songs, tracks, and albums to see how my picks compare. Unsurprisingly, there’s a significant difference. Many people listen more to Swift’s folklore and evermore albums, while others like her country style and lean more towards Fearless and Speak Now. My favorite music genre is pop, so obviously, I lean more toward Swift’s pop side of her music. Due to my taste, you’ll find that my top five Taylor Swift albums can be considered controversial below.

Number 5: Lover

The first time I listened to Lover completely was on an airplane, and it felt majestical listening to “Daylight” as the lights of New York City drew closer and closer. Lover is an album with 18 tracks all about finding, losing, mourning and reminiscing about love. All of the tracks in the album have a vibe that will always get you dancing. With hits like “Cruel Summer”, “Afterglow”, “The Man”, and “Paper Rings”, you will not hesitate to sing the lyrics of this joyous album.

Number 4: Midnights

Midnights is Swift’s most recent album and covers several topics that are truly heart-warming. You need to listen to the album a good 5-6 times to really get the gist of the messages Swift is expressing to the people listening to her music. From self-reflection pieces like “You’re On You’re Own Kid” to careless pieces like “Karma”, the wide range of topics that Swift covers will get your adrenaline pumping whether you’re dancing or contemplating life by staring at a bedroom wall.

Number 3: Speak Now

Although Speak Now is pretty much a country album, and I don’t associate myself too much with country, Swift’s lyrics and energy just made me so hooked to this album. Similarly to Midnights, Swift dives into personal topics of hers and blossoms throughout the album. I can’t express how excited I get when I hear the drums at the beginning of “Haunted” and eagerly await

the chorus that gives me goosebumps. Speak Now has a collection of songs that will get you to experience various emotions. I can guarantee you’ll find yourself crying after listening to “Last Kiss”, or you’ll be jumping on your bed while jamming to “The Story of Us”. Speak Now is the perfect combination of songs that will help you go through any mood you might have someday.

Number 2: 1989

I think we can all agree that 1989 is the pop album to defy all other pop albums. 1989 is full of songs that will always get you dancing, like “New Romantics” and “Style”. It also has criminally underrated songs like “You Are In Love”, “Wonderland”, and others. However, Swift also incorporates her personal experiences in this song at the same time. The songs in this album are crafted so well, that when you realize what Swift means by a particular song you’re listening to, you’ll see it from a completely new perspective. The chills in the “Out Of The Woods” bridge and the last line of “Clean” will never leave my body after noticing their true meanings.  This album has the perfect collection of songs that you will never get tired of listening to.

Number 1: Reputation

Reputation is undoubtedly Swift’s best era of all time. During this time, several speculations and rumors were made about Swift, and she defied all that controversy with this fantastic album. The message of it is so powerful, and while creating that impact, her songwriting pleased us like it always does. From here, Swift’s music production definitely evolved from 1989.

Reputation is home to incredible songs like “Call It What You Want”, “Getaway Car”, “Don’t Blame Me”, and others that portray that reckless energy produced throughout the album. Honestly, not all of the songs in this album are my all-time favorites, but the collection of them with the messages is what makes this album so incredible. Unless Swift creates an album that is even more powerful than this album and her others combined, I don’t think this album will be getting any lower on my list anytime soon.

Looking back on how I saw Swift before getting into her, I never realized how oblivious I was to her music. Maybe it was because I was too focused on school to listen to music, or I just didn’t get the hype about her at the time. However, I wish I started listening to her earlier because her music really isn’t just break-up songs. It’s full of personal experiences, relatable moments, and lines that will make your heart break every time you listen to them. There is a reason why Swift has broken so many records. Her lyrics become more meaningful as she jumps from era to era, taking us along with her journey through her music.